The Visit
by sea-ess-eye
Summary: *Now continued* Regina undergoes a Sleeping Curse in order to insert herself into Emma's memories and she only has one hour to transfer an important message. Post-ep for 3x11. Swan Queen.
1. Chapter 1

**The Visit**

**Summary: **Regina undergoes a Sleeping Curse in order to insert herself into Emma's memories and she only has one hour to transfer an important message. Post-ep for 3x11. Swan Queen.

**Disclaimer**: OUAT is not mine, blah blah.

**A/N**: Thanks for reading :). Reviews will be treasured always.

* * *

The knocking on the door wasn't going away. Emma ran from the other end of her small apartment to try to get whoever it was to stop before they made too much noise. In her haste she bumped her shoulder on the fridge which stuck out from the kitchen into the walkway and stumbled onto something hard.

"Ow ffff!" she hissed. She looked down and realised she'd stepped on a brightly coloured piece of Fisher Price plastic on the floor. She cursed and kicked the block into the corner and lunged for the front door.

The knocks got louder just as she unbolted the deadlock. _I really need to get one of those door chain thingys._

"Shh! Stop knocking," Emma whispered as soon as she cracked open the door. "I have a baby sleeping. What do you… want?"

Emma trailed off and stared at the woman apparently in about as much shock as she was. Her mouth went dry when she saw that the woman was stunningly beautiful. Brunette, not tall, maybe mid 30's, stylishly dressed and carrying herself with a posture that spoke of control, confidence, and grace. Emma was immediately self-conscious of her own appearance, she was still wearing her tank top and bed shorts and her unwashed hair was thrown up in a haphazard ponytail. Her roundish tummy showed that she'd been pregnant recently. She felt absurdly young at her eighteen years.

What on earth was a classy woman like this doing in this part of town? Let alone in the shitty rundown apartment block that Emma only barely managed to afford.

"Listen, lady, I don't want any trouble," warned Emma. She pushed her thick black glasses up her nose and tried to glare impressively. She held the door firm without opening it fully. They could both hear police sirens wailing nearby and loud voices arguing in one of the apartments down the hall. She could see the woman looking her over and noticing the peeling paint of the hall and the dim lighting.

"I'm not here to cause any trouble." The woman smiled, her slash of red lipstick widened to reveal a set of perfect white teeth. In it there was a cross between amusement and a challenge.

Emma rolled her eyes. "Okay, well if you're selling or collecting I got no money. And don't bother trying to roll my place later because all I got is second-hand stuff from Goodwill. You want money you should sell that handbag. It looks like it's worth more than my car."

"Miss Swan, do you always answer the door in this state of undress and list your monetary assets?"

Emma was even more on guard now. "How'd you know my name?"

"I'm from Social Services," the woman began, she must've seen the fright that leaped into Emma's face and softened her voice. "Nothing's wrong, dear. My name is Regina. I'm here to check on you and make sure you're coping. Maybe we can have a talk and you can tell me how you are?"

"Oh," Emma breathed out. "I didn't know they did that. That's kinda… nice. Um, sure. Come in."

* * *

Regina surveyed the apartment as she was led inside, relieved that the teenage Emma had fallen for her flimsy ruse. She ran her eyes over every detail, landing on every bit of furniture and item, as though taking an inventory of what was there and what was lacking. There seemed to be a lot lacking and it left her with a sinking feeling.

The apartment was small and not in good condition. There was only one window, hidden by a sheet for now, and two closed doors that must've led to the bathroom and bedroom. A battered old couch and coffee table were the only real furniture items she could see. They were covered in baby magazines, a few stuffed toys, and an assortment of towels and blankets. A sad-looking pram and foldup high chair were propped in the corner near a stack of brown cardboard moving boxes.

Emma was making a hasty effort at tidying up as she went along, she shifted a basket of laundry to the side and grabbed armfuls of stuff off the couch so they could sit down.

"Sorry it's such a mess," Emma apologised with embarrassment. "I just moved and haven't had time to do much. The baby's stuff is all over the place."

"It's fine," Regina said, putting on a smile. She took up a stuffed teddy bear and fingered the blue ribbon around its neck. The name of an Arizona hospital was stitched into the toy's furry belly.

They had only just sat down when Emma jumped up again and headed to the fridge. "Oh yeah, I should... Can I get you a drink or something? All I got is water and apple juice. I'm underage and still uh, breastfeeding so there's nothing grownup to offer you I'm afraid. It's really nice juice though, the dude next door gets all this organic stuff from work and he gave me a few bottles. Would you like some?"

Regina smiled again. "Apple juice would be lovely. Thankyou, Emma."

Once the teenager had supplied them with glasses of cold juice they both sipped in silence.

"You like it?" said Emma, still referring to the juice. "It's made from red apples, not green. Green apple juice is so gross. I can't get enough of red apples. Dunno why."

"I like them too," said Regina. She set down her glass so she could remove her blazer.

Emma noticed and grabbed at her blonde ponytail nervously. "I know it's stuffy and hot in here. I can't afford aircon and the fan is in the bedroom for the baby."

"I understand, of course. Let's get started shall we. How's the baby?"

"He's fine, healthy and developing normally. Eight weeks old last Monday. I took him to the free clinic and they gave him his shots and a checkup. He's growing so fast I can't believe it, but I think he's settling into a routine finally. Things have been a bit chaotic for a while because of hospital and jail and moving and all that stuff, but I'm trying my best. Whatever that is."

"Why don't you tell me how you're doing, Emma?"

Emma shrugged and her eyes darted around shiftily. "Me? Oh, uh good. Yeah, I'm doing good."

Regina knew Emma enough to know that she was being evasive, nodding too quickly and after she spoke she bit her lower lip as though to stop herself from saying more. She had a feeling that the teenager wasn't telling the whole truth. She may have been good at detecting lies but she wasn't good at telling them.

"It's hard being a single mother," said Regina. "I know that doing it alone isn't easy. You have no-one to help you with the little things or even just have someone to talk to for reassurance. Sometimes it feels like you're not doing enough for your child. It can make you feel guilty."

Emma was pressing her lips together tightly, like she was trying her hardest not to give in to crying. She swiped at a bit of liquid in the corner of her eye.

"Uh. Yeah, I guess so," Emma exhaled and crossed her arms in front of her. "What choice do I have? I'm sure you read my file. I don't have any family. I'm all he's got so I have to do what's best for him. But I sometimes feel like... I'm too young and stupid to do this. I'm not good enough and I never will be."

"Even as I say this you might not believe it, but you're better than you think you are, Emma."

The teen peered at her searchingly and obviously wasn't convinced, just as Regina predicted. A sudden cry rang out of the bedroom, a repetitive distress signal that was familiar to both women. In fact the urge to respond to it was so strong that Regina had to stop herself from getting up.

"I'll just go get him," Emma said. When she came out of the bedroom and sat down again there was a whimpering infant laying in her arms. All the baby was wearing was a diaper and a small white vest. _Henry._ Just like she remembered him. Regina had the urge to reach out and place a hand on his perfect smooth skin to check that he wasn't too hot.

"He's hungry. Will it bother you if I feed him in front of you?" said Emma.

Regina was quick to shake her head. "No, of course not."

Emma unclipped her nursing bra and the baby latched on eagerly, cutting off his cries. She stroked his superfine hair and leaned back into the couch without taking her eyes off him for a second. Regina wanted to be annoyed at not being able to see much of the baby's face anymore but she was too taken in by the beautiful sight. Something that she hadn't shared with her son herself and never thought she'd see. Emma had a slight smile of content on her face. Regina couldn't take her eyes off her and luckily the teen was too absorbed to notice. _How different Emma is when she doesn't know that she hates me._

"What's his name?" asked Regina.

"Henry." Emma looked up and smiled. There was pride glowing there now.

"That's a lovely name. It was my father's name too but it's not very common anymore. How did you decide upon it?"

Emma laughed lightly. "Yeah, I have no idea. I think I was still out of it when I filled in the birth certificate. Hm, wait. I didn't have drugs actually. By the time I got released and was taken to the hospital it was too late for all that. It's weird that I ended up naming him Henry because I had a name picked out beforehand. I was going to call him River. After that actor kid in Stand By Me, I must've seen that movie a hundred times while I was pregnant."

Regina narrowed her eyes in disbelief. "You were going to call your child River Swan?"

Emma tried not to laugh too hard and jostle the feeding baby. "I know right. I didn't even realise at the time. Stupid pregnancy brain."

The baby detached from her breast for a moment and mewled grumpily. Emma shifted him. "You done, kid? Oops, no. There you go again, seconds it is. I never know if he's done or not."

Emma took one of Henry's feet and ran her thumb gently over the little toes. "I don't really like kids that much and maybe I'm biased but he's pretty much the cutest baby ever right? Aren't you, Henry. Kid? Oh well, you're no help, too busy stuffing your face hey. Let's ask someone impartial. Regina, what do you say?"

"Your son is beautiful, Emma. You two make quite the pair."

* * *

Emma laid the sleepy boy back in his bassinet in the bedroom after he'd had his fill. She laid him on his back like the magazines instructed and moved all of the blankets and toys out of the way so that he wouldn't get hot or smothered. His eyes closed sleepily and he drifted off again.

When she returned to the apartment Regina was gone from her perch on the couch. The teen spied her sitting on the floor, managing to make it look like a yoga pose somehow. The woman was as regal as her namesake. She was reading a sheet of paper and concentrating on putting together an assortment of toys and shapes.

Regina noticed her return. "I thought I'd assemble the baby activity gym for you. I saw the Fisher Price box waiting in the corner."

"You don't have to do that." Emma joined her on the floor and leaned back on her hands. "But thanks, I couldn't for the life of me figure out how the hell it goes together."

"There's a trick to it."

"Yeah, what's that?"

"Read the instructions, dear." Regina raised her eyebrows and was delighted to see Emma give her a smartass 'har har' look in return. She went back to sorting the pieces on the floor.

"Have you got kids?" asked Emma.

"I have a son but he doesn't live with me anymore."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bring that up. You must miss him huh."

"Yes, every day I think of him," said Regina. "And his mother. We've been separated for a long time."

Emma tried to keep her reaction hidden. _Well, isn't that a surprise and such a coincidence._ _My social worker is a divorced lesbian Mommy._ The teen was curious as to what happened and was dying to know more. Regina seemed like she had everything going for her. There was some backstory here for sure, but no way to ask without being incredibly prying.

"So are you seeing anyone now?" asked Emma casually. "Or is there a chance of you getting back with her."

Regina furrowed a perfectly shaped eyebrow with amusement. "My, you are nosy."

"Hey, you're a social worker. Your job is being nosy. Perhaps you don't like the taste of your own medicine. I'm just making friendly conversation."

"I'm alone. For now."

Emma smirked. "Hm, why do I suddenly wish I was about ten years older."

"Is that relevant?" Regina busied herself with a bright green plastic frog that was supposed to hang from the baby gym.

"It would be. God, you're exactly my type you know. Wish we were the same age. Not that I'm in much of a state to be dating anyone these days let alone someone like you. I just had a baby and I'm covered in spitup or poop about ninety percent of the time. Time is a luxury I don't have anymore. As soon as the kid gets a bit older I've gotta find a job and maybe study something if I can. Dating isn't even on my agenda."

"So Henry's father..."

"Is not in the picture and never will be. Jerk. Didn't think I'd ever fall for a guy but he was kinda the exception to the rule. I had a girlfriend before that, we ran away from the foster home together. When I found out she was into drugs and other stuff she slapped me across the face and left. But at least she didn't get me pregnant and land my ass in jail. I think I'm done with relationships. I always seem to fall for the wrong sort and end up getting hurt."

"Hand me that piece of giraffe? It goes with that one." Regina pointed to the toy nearest Emma.

"Nah I got it. Even I can tell that the giraffe's head goes on the giraffe's body. There. You can do the rest though, you're all over this construction business. It's a cool looking gym thing isn't it? I got it from one of those charity toy drives."

"My son had one just like it when he was a baby."

Regina inserted one of the arms of the gym into the corner of the brightly coloured mat and it held fast with the other three in place. The plastic toy zoo animals dangled from the arms ready for Henry to lay under and be entertained by. Emma could picture it in her mind. His wide green eyes would watch the toys above him with interest and he would reach out with a little hand to grab them. Not for the first time she realised how close she came to never seeing her child again.

"Do you know that I was going to give him up?" said Emma. "I had planned to."

"Yes."

"I changed my mind. I'm not sure if it was the right thing to do or not. What do you think?"

"It doesn't matter what I think. It was your choice, it matters what you think."

Emma let out a breath. "I dunno. I'm pretty young but I do love him. I was an orphan myself so I know that there's plenty of not-so-great situations out there. But what if there was someone good out there who was waiting to adopt my baby? Maybe a married couple who couldn't have kids, or a single business lady who really wanted to be a mother and never got the chance, or maybe a couple of nice lesbian Moms or gay Dads. Someone better than me who could've given Henry a way nicer home than this."

The teenage mother finished her speech by gesturing to the ugly faded paintjob that marred the four walls of the small apartment she rented. Just as she said it the sheet acting as a makeshift curtain fell from where it was tacked across the window. It slipped to the floor and exposed the daylight through the dirty glass.

Emma smiled ironically. "Nice. We haven't got much but at least he's got a really awesome gym thing to play with." She reached out to flick the dolphin's tail and sent it spinning around.

* * *

Regina pushed open the bedroom door slowly in case it made any noise. She glanced behind her at the bathroom door where Emma was hidden inside. The teen had become embarrassed about still being in her nightclothes and she ducked away to change. She would be gone for a few minutes and it still wouldn't be long enough.

The bedroom was small and simple like the rest of the apartment. There was a double bed, a nightstand, and a tallboy piled with just enough clothes for a baby and a teenager. Henry was quiet in his bassinet in the corner. Regina was aching to go to him but she needed to look around first.

On the nightstand there was a picture of a young nervous-looking Emma holding a newborn wrapped in a blue blanket. It looked like it was taken not long after the baby was born. Laying beside the picture frame were Emma's circle necklace, her carkeys with the star keychain, and a hospital wrist bracelet with "Henry b/o Emma Swan" and his birthdate written on it.

Regina recognised some of the items. _You never throw anything away do you, Emma?_ Almost as if she'd had so little in her life that she held onto whatever she had. Or perhaps it was because she believed that anything she had was good enough for her and never sought to replace things with better or newer versions. When Emma's heart attached to something it never let go.

Regina picked up a thick white book that said "BABY" on the front. It was a scrapbook and Emma had already started filling it in, carefully recording Henry's stats at birth and his subsequent milestones. The inscription inside the cover read:

_Dear Emma _

_Girl you know you need this for little River. Me and the Ladies chipped in. Don't you listen to them haters! Trust yourself always and you will be a great Mom. You are the nicest girl I ever shared a cell with you hear me. I know your gonna go places when you get out. _

_Love Shawna_

She tried to swallow the discomfort choking her throat, reminded of Emma's wrongful incarceration and the circumstances of Henry's birth. Regina replaced the book in exactly the same way as she found it. Lying on the floor there was a pair of scuffed Converse shoes, a Nirvana CD case and disc player, and a shoebox full of hair ties and toiletries. Items that could've been seen in the bedroom of any other teenage girl.

Her eyes met the unmade bed next where a handmade woollen blanket was bunched up. She'd seen it once before and recognised the purple embroidery immediately. Regina didn't know how she knew but she had a vision of Emma clutching the baby blanket at night for comfort when she fell into an exhausted sleep.

_Oh god, she's so young. A baby is raising my baby._

She listened carefully but figured that Emma must still be in the bathroom. Regina went over to the bassinet where her son was awake. He was looking around curiously and wiggling his legs. He had his arms in the air reaching. Unable to resist any longer she scooped him up and settled him on her shoulder and felt the shards of loss press deeper into her chest.

"Hello Henry," she whispered. "I've missed you so much."

"Can you put him down please?" said Emma, her tone was polite but there was a slight hard edge to it that Regina was familiar with.

It felt like ripping out her own heart but Regina reluctantly bent to place Henry back in the bassinet. The baby reached up and she imagined that it was for her, even though this version of him had no memory of her at all. It almost looked like he was waving his little hand goodbye.

"I apologise," said Regina, taking a step back. "I should've asked first."

Emma put her hands on her jean-clad hips and nodded. She scanned the room as though checking for any disturbance or theft.

"What are you doing in here?" said Emma.

"I was merely-" Regina smiled. "I heard the baby cry."

"No, you didn't. The walls are thin here, trust me. I would've heard him."

"I just wanted to see him again."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Sure you weren't snooping around? You're not a social worker are you. Don't give me that look like you don't know what I'm talking about. I'm not a total idiot. I told you I've been in the system. I never heard of a social worker who paid more than five minutes attention to anyone _ever_. You've been here for nearly an hour."

Regina hastily checked her watch. Emma was right. "I'm running out of time," she murmured.

"While you were in here I was doing a little snooping of my own. What the hell is _this_, Regina? If that's even your real name."

Emma held up a photo that she'd taken out of Regina's purse out in the living room. It was a photo of a boy with two women standing behind him. They weren't smiling widely but each laid a protective hand on his shoulder. Regina was the brunette in the photo and the other woman was blonde. It had been taken at a lousy dinner party by a happy-snappy schoolteacher armed with an iPhone.

"Who the hell is in this photo with you, Regina? She looks just like me but older. Is this my sister? Are you married to my sister? Did something happen to her? Is that why you're here?"

Regina shook her head. "No, Emma -"

"If you know something about my family - tell me!" Emma demanded. "I've been searching for them my whole life."

Regina held out her hands pacifyingly. "I do know your family but it's not what you think."

"Who is the chick in this photo? I need to know!"

"It's you, Emma. And that's Henry."

* * *

Emma stalked into the living room with her arms folded and heard the other woman following behind. She was increasingly suspicious of this sham visit and wanted to draw the action away from Henry. She didn't know what Regina's motives were but they weren't good and Emma didn't want anything to happen to her baby. This woman could be a crazy baby-snatcher for all she knew. She couldn't kick her out yet though. _Because of that photo..._

"Explain to me who you are and what you're doing here," she said.

"I don't have time to get into all of that. But I need your help."

Emma scoffed. "You need _my_ help? I can't do anything. There's not a lot I'm great at in life but I can tell when anyone is lying and you… aren't. The only conclusion is that you're crazy, lady."

Regina ignored that with obvious difficulty. "I don't have much time left. Someone will come to find you in ten years. He'll look strange and tell you strange things but you must believe what he says. Emma, promise me. Everything depends on you. I won't be able to come again myself. But if the man tries to tell that you that he's your lover don't believe that…"

"What are you, like a time traveller or something? Ok, I'll bite. If some weird guy comes here and tries to hit on me I'll kick him in the nuts. Happy?"

"For once in your life stop being skeptical," Regina snapped. "Listen to me carefully. Something terrible has happened. Your parents are in danger. Your family - everyone - needs you. We need you to save us as you were born to do."

"My family is right here," said Emma coldly. "In the bedroom. I don't have parents."

"You do. You're just as irritating as they are sometimes. I don't know why I put up with any of it."

Emma rolled her eyes. "If you're 'running out of time' or whatever, can you just get to the point? Instead of insulting me."

"All I can tell you is that your family needs you. They didn't abandon you, Emma. You were very much wanted."

"Uh huh, so in this fantasy land you're telling me about where I have parents and friends… hey, do I have a wife? Is she hot?"

"Oh for god's sake, Emma. Be serious."

"Is that a yes?"

Regina gritted her teeth. "Will you at least listen to what I have to say?"

Emma waved her hands in a 'go ahead' gesture. "Sure."

"I thought you would be happy here, but I was wrong. You still feel as if there's something missing in your life don't you? You're not sure what it is but there's a hole in your heart and you don't know why. The only thing you know is that it's there. You feel like you can't raise your son properly if you're constantly worrying over your fears and your troubles."

"How do you know that," said Emma quietly.

"I felt it too."

It was scary how accurately Regina's words described what was in her heart. Emma was terrified. She had been ever since she'd held Henry in her arms for the first time. It'd changed her, it filled her with an overwhelming amount of joy and fear all at once. Every day she revisited her decision to keep him and wondered if it was the right thing to do. She worried about his sleeping, his eating, his health, their living situation, their financial situation, their future… The list never ended. She had no idea if anything she was doing was right. She had no-one to ask.

But this was the first day that a crazy lady had showed up. The potential danger of it was almost worth the break in her monotonous routine of feeding and sleeping.

Emma nodded thoughtfully. "So you want my help in ten years' time but you won't tell me: 1) who you really are, 2) what you need me to help with, or 3) how I'm going to do whatever it is. Now I'm really convinced. Why are you here if you're not going to tell me anything useful?"

"I came here to tell you the one thing that all mothers should know."

"What's that."

"You're doing your best and that's good enough. The most important thing anyone can ever have is hope. Your mother told me to tell you that. It's why I'm here now."

"Ok, whatever. You told me. Now you really need to leave." Emma grabbed Regina's blazer and handbag from the couch and handed them to her. She started ushering her towards the door. If she hadn't been too hasty she could've caught sight of the microwave clock in the kitchen. It read 3:57.

Regina checked her own watch. She pleaded. "Emma, wait. I still have three minutes."

"Nope. Your watch must be fast. You're out of time with me."

"Please! Don't make me leave before I have to. I sacrificed much to come here. Let me have my last three minutes with you and Henry. He's everything to me. He's all I have."

"No. He's not yours, he's mine. You're not getting anywhere near my son!"

"I'm not here to hurt him. He's the only one I'm not a danger to. Emma, stop-!"

At the door, Regina stood her ground even though Emma was pushing her away. There was a scuffle and Emma successfully reached around to open the door and shoved the older woman out of the apartment.

The clock ticked over to 3:58.

Regina's entire body seemed to be screaming, trying to tell her something, pleading with her to believe in the strange story. But it was just so… insane. It was way too good to be true. If Emma had parents and friends who depended on her, people who wanted and loved her, then where were they? Where were they when _she_ needed help? She'd been alone her entire life. Now that she was a mother she would never be truly alone again. But for some reason she still felt lonely and she was starting to lose hope that the feeling would ever go away.

"I know you don't believe me but I have to try," said Regina with increasing panic. "We knew each other in the future. Yes, we never got on well but there was more to it than that-"

Emma sighed. "Look, I'm sorry you lost someone. I think maybe you're grieving and you've glommed onto me and my kid in order to deal with that. But it isn't real. You need help."

"Yes! I need _your_ help! You're the only one whose power is enough to match mine. Just tell me you believe me."

"Uh, sure. Ok I believe you."

Emma held the door and still the woman stood in the doorway, refusing to move and let it close. She was sympathetic to the Regina's plight and normally she'd have nothing better to do than help out an attractive lady who was clearly in trouble, but she couldn't do this now. She had Henry to think about and protecting him was all that mattered.

Regina stopped struggling against the door and stepped back. She nodded to herself as though she expected exactly this to happen.

"I know," said Regina resignedly, almost to herself. "I can't make you believe. I can't make you remember."

"I'm sorry," Emma softened her tone, trying to be less harsh about rejecting the lady's delusions. "Hey, if it is true… I guess I'll see you in ten years?"

Regina smiled sadly. "I hope so. But it may not be possible."

"Hey, anyway, for what it's worth, thanks for sitting and talking with me for a while. It was kinda nice you know. I got no-one else to talk to."

"You're welcome, Emma."

That was the last thing she heard before shutting the door. Emma leaned back against the rough wood with a sigh, thinking over everything that just happened over the last hour. There was something about Regina that made her want to believe all the crazy stuff she was saying.

Emma caught sight of something square and flat lying in the living room. It was the photo she'd taken from Regina's purse. The teenager got up and retrieved it without noticing that there was one less person in it now. She should give it back to her, maybe Regina hadn't left yet and was still in the hallway. But when she opened the door and looked outside there was no-one there. No-one was waiting down near the ricketty ancient elevator either.

How could she have disappeared so fast?

Emma closed the apartment door with a soft snick and locked the deadbolt. She couldn't afford to take her chances with safety in this neighbourhood. Maybe she wouldn't stay here very long though. She'd scrape together some money and move on.

A baby's cry rang out in the apartment and she sighed. Emma caught sight of the microwave clock on her way, the display read 4:00 exactly.

In the bedroom the young mother lifted her baby out of his bassinet and settled his weight on her shoulder.

"Shh kid." Emma swayed from side-to-side trying to sooth him. "You're not hungry again are you. Your little butt's dry so what's wrong huh. Just sad? I get sad sometimes too and it's ok, things will get better. Hey, I got a cool idea. The pretty lady put your activity gym together for you. How about we go play with it?"

* * *

_Fairytale Land_

The woman laying there was all in black, the colour that had always suited her best. It had been suggested that she be dressed in white for the occasion but those who had known her wouldn't allow it, insisting that she wouldn't be caught be dead wearing it after a life-long feud with its namesake.

Snow White gazed with sadness on the still form and a tear slipped down her cheek. Her husband placed an arm around her shoulders. They were dressed in their royal finery as usual, her in swan feathers and he in a redcoat with silver fastenings and a sword.

The dwarves shook their heads, indicating that there was nothing more to be done. They lifted the glass coffin and settled it in place where it would remain untouched for years, protecting and preserving the one inside.

"What happens now?" said Snow.

"We wait." Killian stepped up close to the coffin to examine the Queen's face for movement but she was deathly still. Leather boots creaked as the sketchy pirate moved and the smell of rum followed.

"For how long," said Charming with some impatience. "I don't like this plan. Too much of its success depends on you."

"Well, we don't exactly have much of a choice now do we, mate. There's no way we can win this battle without the Queen. It was her idea, we have to follow it through. We have to trust that Swan can save us."

"How do we know if Emma even got the message?"

"We don't." Killian shrugged.

"Yes, we do." Snow spoke up. "Regina risked not only her life but an eternity of poisoned sleep for a single hour with her. She wouldn't have done that if she didn't believe in Emma. She wouldn't fail."

Killian paused and looked startled for a second. He raised his eyebrows and used his hook to salute the glass coffin. "Ah. Always did fancy a fair fight over a lady. May the best man - or woman - win, Your Majesty."

The pirate swaggered away and the dwarves left too. After the others were gone from the chamber Snow shot an amused glance at her husband. His jaw was tight and he was staring fiercely at the coffin.

"I'm not sure which option I dislike more," grumbled Charming.

Snow smiled. "We both know that when we see our daughter again the last thing on your mind will be giving her a parental lecture about her choice in suitors."

"What do we do until then?"

"We fight. We survive one day at a time and hope that Emma and Henry are doing the same."

"What happens to Regina?"

Snow hooked her arm through his elbow. "When she wakes up you owe me ten gold. I told you they were sneaking off together in Neverland..."


	2. Chapter 2

**The Visit 2**

**A/N:** The sequel bandwagon has spoken and this story has now been continued with part two. Thanks to reviewers and those who requested or demanded a sequel :). This begins just after Hook turns up.

* * *

"Who was at the door, Mom?" Henry asked again.

Emma shrugged without looking up from her breakfast plate. "I told you, I don't know."

"You never tell me anything."

Emma tried not to feel exasperated by his persistent questioning. She stuffed another forkful of pancake into her mouth. The last thing she was going to do was explain to her twelve-year-old son that she'd been kissed out of nowhere by some crazy guy who smelled of rum and leather and looked like he'd walked out of Treasure Island. The man knew her name though and that rattled her. Was there a threat to her family's safety?

Henry was a kid who was not easily dissuaded by a vague answer. She was yet to tell him something that she'd known about for a few days, something that he'd even less like hearing. But she was running out of time. Might as well get it over with.

"Kid, there is something I have to talk to you about…" said Emma. "We gotta start packing today ok? It's time we moved on."

Henry blinked in surprise. "We're moving _again_? Why."

"We were never meant to stay here for long. You know we're only subletting this place while the Taylors are in Europe. I got an email from them saying that they're coming home early because of a family emergency and they need the apartment back. We can't stay here. It isn't our home."

"We don't _have_ a home," said Henry shortly. "I don't want to move again. We never stay anywhere long enough, I never get to make friends. Why did you have to spring this on me like this?"

"I know, Henry," said Emma gently. She reached across the table to put her hand over his. "I'm sorry. Next place will be different. Boston? Maybe we can really settle down there. It'll be good for us, you'll see."

"Is this because of Amy? Are you looking for an excuse to get away from her?"

Emma was shocked. "Wh- How do you-"

"She called last night while you were in the shower. She sounded nice. Why didn't you let me meet her?"

"Kid, it's not like we were serious. It just didn't work out."

"Because you didn't let it. You always push everyone away."

"It's nothing to do with Amy," Emma said firmly. "We have to leave because the Taylors need their place back by Monday. We are moving today. I want you to start packing your stuff after breakfast please."

"NO. I'm not going!"

Henry dropped his fork with clatter. His chair scraped loudly as he stood up and stomped off to his bedroom (or rather, Mrs Taylor's sewing room).

"Fine!" she said over her shoulder. Emma had just about lost her patience with his pre-teenage backchat. "You can live here with the Taylors then. Maybe they'll adopt you."

"I wish they would! I wish you weren't my Mom."

Henry disappeared into his room and slammed the door shut with a bang. Emma sighed and closed her eyes. He really knew how to get on her last raw nerve and the worst part of it was that he was right. She needed to get her act together and provide a more stable home for her son. Ever since he was born he'd been carted around the country with her, never stopping in one town or city for very long.

She felt incredibly guilty dragging him through her itinerant life. Not for the first time she wondered if she'd done the right thing by keeping him.

_He didn't mean it_, she told herself. She knew not to take it personally and that he was just saying it because he was angry and frustrated. She'd read in those parenting magazines that kids say things like that when they are not unable to express their emotions and they feel powerless. He was pushing her buttons, trying to get her to change her mind like he often did on moving day. It still hurt though. Especially because he was the only person in the world that loved her. He was everything.

"You don't mean that, kid," she said to the empty air. "If you woke up tomorrow and never had any parents at all you'd regret it."

* * *

"Why do I do this to myself," Emma muttered, stuffing her clothes into her suitcase. Packing was coming along quickly and easily. One of her boxes was ready to go because she hadn't even unpacked it from the last move. Why did she even keep it then if she didn't need whatever was inside? What was the point of all this?

_Moving is one of the most frustrating pain-in-the-ass things you can ever do and yet I do it all the time, _she thought sarcastically._ What am I searching for in all these different places? A home? Well, that's just great. I'm never going to find what I'm looking for because a home isn't a place on a map. I should stop running and stay still. For Henry at least._

Because of her juvie record and lack of education or skills she had trouble finding good decent-paying work for several years. Things were a lot better lately, but when Henry was much younger she'd had no choice other than to rely on childcare while she worked two jobs. Thankfully he was smart and his education hadn't been too screwed up by changing schools often. Books for Henry were the one thing she'd always managed to scrape together enough money for. She wanted him to have a better chance in life than she had.

But she was still failing at being a stable parent. He needed roots. He was at the age when peer groups were increasingly important. He was old enough now to see the difference between his life and other kids' lives. He had no family other than her and eventually he stopped asking why he didn't have a Dad. He knew that she dated women these days now that he was a bit older, but Emma wasn't interested in a long-term relationship so she never let her son see that part of her.

_Before we leave I should call Amy to apologise for being a non-committal jerk and say "It's not you, it's me." _

Biggest cliche ever, but it was true in this case. Another cliche came to mind: orphans have trouble with emotional attachment. For Emma that wasn't completely true. She'd loved before, someone who ended up betraying her, but still - she'd given her heart fully and got handcuffs slapped on her wrists in return. Now the only love she had time for was Henry.

Emma shifted a manila folder full of important documents, including their birth certificates and Henry's health records, and slipped it into the pocket of her suitcase.

A small piece of cardboard fluttered to the floor and caught her eye. It was a photo. She picked it up wondering where it'd come from. She stored all of Henry's growing-up pics digitally.

It was a photo of her and Henry, but the strange thing was she wasn't standing directly behind him or next to him. They were the only two in the photo but there was a space next to her, almost like another person could've been standing there.

"Where did this come from?" Emma murmured. "I don't remember where this was taken."

Henry looked about the same age but she didn't recognise the background. The photo had no printer's watermarks on the back and it looked old and rough around the edges. She hadn't noticed it among her belongings before.

_Maybe at the next place you'll find someone who could fill that gap in your photos,_ her mind noted wryly.

Emma caught sight of her alarm clock. It was time to move on. She slipped the photo into the back pocket of her jeans and closed up the zip on her suitcase. She made a vow to herself about changing her ways like she had many times before.

_At the new place things will be different this time._ _I'll be different. I can change._

* * *

"I hate moving," the boy grumbled under his breath. "My life sucks."

Twelve-year-old Henry pulled his suitcase out from under the bed. His supply of clothes was already in there because there was no closet. He knew from experience that the rest of his things would easily fit in the small suitcase with room to spare.

He and Emma had just enough to get by on. Sometimes he felt weird at school wearing the same set of outfits all the time, but at least he didn't have to wear stuff from thrift shops anymore. Other kids had made a point of letting him know what a dork he looked like back then.

It wasn't difficult to locate which things were his belongings and which things were endemic to Mrs Taylor's flowery sewing room. When they'd first got here he'd had to move the sewing machine off the desk so he could have a place to study. He collected his school books from the desk and his favourite comics and packed them all. Next, he stored his laptop carefully in between layers of clothes so it wouldn't get damaged. His mom had saved up for a while to get it and he knew he wasn't likely to get a replacement for a few years.

There wasn't much point in accumulating more stuff than would fit in the car. Sometimes on moving day they'd have to drop by charity stores to get rid of whatever they wouldn't be taking to the new place.

Birthdays were his favourite time of the year. Not because he got presents though. Emma always gave him something far better than presents every single year. Even the years that she was particularly short of money. Each year she granted a wish for him, whatever he wanted to do or go to see she'd do her best to make it happen. His wishes over the years had included swimming lessons at Miami beach, looking for dinosaur fossils in Utah, and meeting one of his favourite artists at a comic book convention when they lived in San Francisco. He knew not to ask for expensive adventures but as he'd come to realise over the years, he'd seen and done a lot of cool stuff that other kids hadn't.

_It's almost like Mom doesn't want me to feel trapped by living in one place,_ he thought.

Kids everywhere thought he was weird. He didn't play sports because he moved too much and missed tryouts, he didn't have a game system or a phone, he spoke differently (more grownup and with a different accent, depending on where they happened to be). They seemed to know he'd only be around for a short time and didn't bother asking him to hang out.

Being different was really starting to suck hard.

"Hey kid, you need any help?"

Henry raised his eyes and saw his mother standing in the doorway. "Nope. I'm pretty much done."

"Me too." Emma smiled. She was dressed in her day clothes now. His mom came into the room and sat down on the bed next to him. She bumped her shoulder against his by way of apology.

"I'm sorry about before," she said. "For making you feel like I wasn't listening to why you're angry. I get why you're upset. I know it sucks to be bounced around all over the place when you're a kid and you don't get any say in what happens to you."

Henry looked at the carpet and shrugged. "I guess so. I'm sorry too, Mom. You know I love you?"

She wrapped him up in a hug and all was forgiven. They were both loners and they didn't have much, but the most important thing was that they were together. Fights were gotten over quickly.

Emma kissed his forehead and ruffled his hair. "I gotta go make some phone calls and then we'll start packing the car ok?"

"Yeah. I'm ready now."

Emma left. She'd only been gone from his room about thirty seconds when he called out to her. "Mom? Hey Mom, do you want me to gather the toiletries from in the bathroom? Mooooom?"

"Mom, where are you?" Henry went into the living to see where she'd gone. He stopped in his tracks.

A tall dark-haired man in a long black leather coat had his arms around Emma from behind. She was was neither struggling nor screaming though she was definitely afraid. Her eyes were telling him to run but he was motionless with fear. The first thing Henry noticed about the man was that he only had one hand and it was clapped over his mom's mouth to prevent her from calling for help.

Instead of his other hand, there was a silver hook pressed against Emma's throat.

The pirate winked at Henry. "Time to weigh anchor. Be a good lad and pick up that jellybean on the floor over there will you?"

* * *

_Fairytale Land_

A swirling vortex of light roared like a tornado and dropped its three occupants into the meadowy field. They fell roughly to the ground. The portal closed, having delivered its travellers successfully, and then it disappeared.

"Let go of me! What the HELL was that?!" yelled Emma. She staggered to her feet and grabbed for her son. She checked Henry over for injuries and pulled him close to her by the shoulder. She looked around warily, assessing the new surroundings for immediate threats.

"That," said Killian with a groan, aching already from his faceplant. "Was a portal between realms created by a magic bean. Rough way to travel for a seafarer such as myself but beggars can't be choosers."

"Magic?" cried Henry. "For real? Where are we?"

"Allow me to be the first to welcome you to the Enchanted Forest, young sir. As for your mother, 'welcome _back_' is more appropriate."

Emma's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean."

"You were born here, princess. This is your home." He swept his arm out and around in a grandiose manner.

"Look, I don't know how or why you brought us here and dropped us in the middle of some damn forest. But you are going to take me and my son back to where we came from. _Now_. I don't have a home and this is not where I was born."

Killian stepped up close into her personal space. To her credit she didn't lean away but returned the flirty look with a defiant challenge of her own. His eyes travelled down over her form, red leather jacket and dark skinny jeans tucked into boots, and then back up. He pointed over her shoulder making sure his arm brushed over her collarbones.

"There," he said. "You were born there. In the highest room of the tallest tower I believe."

Emma and Henry turned around and their mouths gaped open in identical expressions of shock. Behind them, rising into the sky was an enormous golden castle. Its many turrets gleamed in the sunlight and it was backed by rocky steeps that met a sparkling lake at their base. The gate was closed by the portcullis and the footbridge was in ruins. The walls showed signs of recent attack and damage.

"Woah," said Henry, taking in the sight with wonder. "It's a castle. A real one."

Emma shaded her eyes. "It looks like something out of-"

"A fairytale?" suggested Killian.

"I was going to say Fantasyland at Disney World. After a bomb went off out front."

"Ah, actually the Disney castle design was based on Sleeping Beauty's castle. It's a two day ride from here. This one belongs to Snow White."

"Really?" said Henry excitedly. "They're real people? That must mean … are you Captain Hook? You are, aren't you."

Killian saluted the boy with his hook. "Good guess, mate. Lost my hand to a nasty croc."

Emma rolled her eyes. "Right. Hey, if I'm a princess and I was born up there doesn't that mean it should be _my_ castle? I'm gonna kick this Snow White's ass."

"Swan! Don't-" hissed Killian. But his warning was too late. He felt the prick of a sword at the back of his neck.

"Halt!" a gruff voice commanded. "Treacherous trespassers! We are the Queen's guard. Keep your hands, hooks, or hooves where we can see them and turn around. Slowly!"

The three of them did as they were bid. Two guards, one male and one female, outfitted in black livery and shining silverplated armour, were holding them at swordpoint. Emma and Henry raised their hands in surrender.

"There's been a mistake," said Killian impatiently. "I'm here on the Queen's orders. You could say we're friends."

The two guards chuckled to each other. "Friends eh? You believe that, Jack?"

"Nope, sounded like they were talking treason to me, Jill."

Emma snorted. "Ok, what the hell is going on here. Magic, fairytales, castles? I'm hallucinating."

Jack gasped. "Illegal drug use! What do you think this is- Wonderland?"

"We don't tolerate that sort of nonsense here," said Jill sharply. "We're taking you in."

"What?!" said Emma in disbelief. "I didn't mean- It was a _joke_! God, you're worse than the TSA."

The guards ignored their protests and shackled Emma's and Killian's hands together behind their backs. There was some debate over whether to restrain the boy and in the end it was decided that anyone old enough to fight in the Ogre Wars ought to be shackled. The conscription age had been lowered yet again to supply the army with fresh soldiers and sometimes the recruiters "accidentally" rounded up younger children anyway.

The three of them were shoved towards the castle and ordered to march.

"I guess this is one way to get inside the castle," said Killian sarcastically. Being tied to Emma and force-marched at swordpoint made walking difficult for both of them.

Emma eyed Henry walking in front. She growled under her breath and whispered to the man beside her. "I don't care what happens to me. I definitely don't care what happens to you. But if anything happens to my kid… I'll shove that hook somewhere unpleasant and hang you out to dry."

"I've missed your ladylike repartee, Swan." Killian turned his face to talk to the guards. "You bucketheads are making a mistake! Do you have any idea who this woman is? You'd better be taking us to the Queen."

"Oh yes, treasonists, you are certainly going to face the Queen's wrath." Jack laughed. He prodded Killian in the back with his sword.

Jill shot her brother a sly look. "I think they'll enjoy meeting her, won't they."

"Indeed. She is not in a forgiving mood today I hear."

* * *

_Throne room_

"Your Majesty, a word? My guards have captured three prisoners who need your attention."

Snow White barely looked up from her parchment map, annoyed at the interruption. "Prisoners are nothing to do with me as you know, Head of the Guards. Ride them outside the castle territory and release them with whatever food they stole. They probably need it. I have neither the time nor inclination to deal with minor infractions. My entire Kingdom is in danger."

"But, Your Majesty. We fear a plot against your life-"

Snow sighed. "What were they arrested for?"

"Treachery, trespass, treason," the Head Guard answered. "And drug use."

The main doors burst open and two armed guards shoved their three prisoners into the hall. The two adults were gagged now and struggling with their captors and the third prisoner was a young boy. When the Queen saw the identities of the prisoners her jaw dropped in shock and she felt her heart start to beat in her chest again.

"Release them now! Then all of you go," she ordered hastily. Snow spoke to the tiny blue bird sitting on her shoulder. "Tell her to to join us immediately and bring my husband."

The guards side-eyed each other wondering what was going on, but they made quick work of untying the bonds. They left and the little blue bird flew out the door after them.

Killian coughed. "Appreciate it, Snow. Usually when I'm handcuffed to someone we're naked and it's a lot more fun."

"It was good for me too," Emma said flatly.

Snow felt the prick of tears as she stared at Emma, then at Henry, then at Emma again. She couldn't believe it. The plan had worked. They were finally being reunited after all these years of waiting. Her daughter and grandson were finally home.

"Emma! Henry! Oh, you're back at last."

Snow went to throw her arms around them both. Emma's eyes widened at the sudden movement. She jerked backwards and pulled Henry behind her, protecting him with her body as though they were being attacked.

"Wait. How do you know who we are," demanded Emma, holding her hand out like a stop sign. "Somebody better explain right now. Why have you kidnapped us and brought us to… to wherever-the-hell-we-are?"

Snow's heart sank. "You don't remember."

Killian nodded ruefully. "She's still cursed. Getting her here wasn't easy."

Snow thanked him profusely for his success, relieved that nothing had gone awry. As she spoke she caught Henry taking in her royal gown and the flowers pinned in her coal black hair. He must've noticed that her skin was pale and her lips, blood red.

"Are you Snow White?" asked the boy.

She smiled. "Yes, Henry. I am."

The side door opened again and Prince Charming burst through. He was followed by a small glowing blue fairy, flying at shoulder height. He strode into the room and stopped dead when he saw them.

"E-Emma?" he stammered. "Henry. Is it really you?"

Snow caught him by the arm before he could run to hug them. He gave her a curious look which turned to sadness at the slight shake of her head. They'd dreamed of this day for so long it was surreal that it was finally here. Their happy ending could never be complete without their daughter.

"Let me guess," said Emma, eyebrow raised. "You're Prince Charming. What is that blue thing flying around you? What is it supposed to be?"

The Blue Fairy floated close to Emma's face. "Now that the Saviour has returned we may fight this great evil that has befallen the land. We must restore her memories."

"You're a fairy!" said Henry. "Do something magical."

"Very well," said Blue. She waved her tiny wand and two small potion bottles appeared, one in Emma's hand and the other in Henry's.

"What is this," said Emma suspiciously. "Poison?"

"A potion," said Snow. "To help you both remember who you really are. It will return your real memories from the past ten years. You will both remember that you have family and a home."

"Are you serious," said Henry. "We have a home?"

"Let me tell you a story, Henry," said Snow, eyes twinkling. "Once upon a time a beautiful baby girl was born to a prince and princess. They loved her so much but they were devastated because a dark curse was set upon them by an Evil Queen who was determined to destroy their happy ending. They sent their beloved baby away to another land where she grew up and had a child of her own..."

Henry was enraptured, searching her expression for truth as she related tales of Storybrooke, Neverland, and the Enchanted Forest. She could tell that he was ready to believe. The boy was keen to know more and Snow realised that was the key. She didn't like it, but they would have to go through Henry to get to Emma. It was the only way.

"... and so the former Evil Queen realised what needed to be done. She let them escape from the curse's return and gifted them with new happy memories. In so doing she gave up the thing she loved most, her son."

"Me?" said Henry with wonder. "It's me in the story. Emma is the Saviour. You're her parents!"

Emma glared at them, unconvinced. "You're supposed to be kind and good, right? You're _cruel_. How could you do that to a kid, tell him wild fantasies and lies. All you're doing is setting him up for disappointment and giving him unrealistic hope. My real parents abandoned me, they dumped me on the side of a road like trash."

"No, Emma," Henry pleaded and yanked on her arm. "That's just where you came through! Probably."

Snow nodded once to Charming and Hook. She hated herself for what she was about to do. "Restrain her. Henry? Drink the potion, sweetie."

"Stop, get off me!" Emma yelled angrily when Hook grabbed her again.

The two men only barely managed to hold Emma back by the arms, out of reach of Henry. She struggled against them, fighting like a wildcat, all the time yelling for them to let go of her and leave her son alone. The boy glanced down at the little glass bottle in his hand, with some uncertainty now. His mother was afraid for him and that was warning enough. But he wanted so badly to believe.

"I don't know what to do," said Henry quietly.

"Henry, please trust me," said Snow. "You and Emma can live here with us, your family, and you can finally have a home in this land. With both of your parents. Drink and you'll remember."

"Henry, don't!" screamed Emma. "It could be poison! NO!"

But her last word was too late, Henry pulled out the stopper and downed the bottle's contents in one gulp. He closed his eyes tightly for a few moments and when he opened them again he gasped as the new memories flooded his mind.

"Grandma!" he said to her and then to the men, "Grandpa. Hook. I remember everything."

Emma slumped in defeat and the men let her go. She ran to Henry and yanked open his mouth as if she could have looked in and retrieved the liquid, droplet by droplet, until the suspected poison was gone. She checked him over like she was expecting symptoms to appear straight away. But he was fine so far.

"Henry?" said Emma worriedly.

"Emma, I'm ok," said Henry. "You need to drink yours too. Everything you remember from the last ten years isn't real. Our minds only think it was. What really happened after I was born is that you gave me up and I was adopted by my real Mom and I lived with her in a place called Storybrooke. You came to live there when I was ten. A year ago we left to escape the curse, it erased everything that happened in Storybrooke and replaced our memories. It's like I have two lives in my head now. Only one of them was real."

"Your real Mom?" repeated Emma in an unreadable tone.

"You have to believe me, Emma," her son pleaded. "Use your superpower to see if I'm lying. I wouldn't lie to you."

"Kid, you lied last week when I asked you if you'd been watering Mrs Taylor's happy plants every day. You're gonna miss out on that twenty she promised you."

"You're just afraid to believe it because you always push people away. You're afraid that it'll turn out not to be true. But it is!"

Snow reached out to place a comforting hand on Emma's shoulder. "Please?"

Emma shook her head stubbornly. "I can't drink it even if I wanted to."

All of them looked down to their feet where the shattered remains of glass lay in a small puddle of blue liquid on the polished floor.

* * *

"There are only two options here," said Emma. "Either I'm dreaming or I've actually gone crazy for real."

"It's not a dream, Emma," said Charming.

"And you are not crazy," said Snow. "I know it must be hard for you to accept. It certainly was the first time you heard the truth."

"You're saying that all of this happened because of some Evil Queen..."

Emma was skeptical, but she felt something inside her urging her to believe. She was in a strange land with strangely dressed people telling her strange things and her son had somehow fallen for it. She was worried about him, but Henry seemed to be having the time of his life. Talking to his "grandma" and "grandpa", asking them all sorts of questions about fairytales and magic. Now he was pretending to duel with the pirate.

Her parents. Well, that was absolutely fucking crazy wasn't it. They were younger than she was. They were fairytale characters. Neither of them was blonde. It couldn't possibly be true and she didn't believe a word of the farfetched tale. It had plotholes in it for a start.

She tried to ignore the fact that this Snow White woman shared an uncanny likeness with her (_I think I have her chin_), apart from the coal black hair and warm loving serene smile (_I feel like I can trust her_). Why exactly was she wearing a dress made of feathers anyway (_I would never wear anything like that_). The prince was handsome and charming like his name indicated, but every time he said something there was a second where she actually did find him charming before chastising herself for it.

Emma was suspicious of the tiny blue fairy who was buzzing around their faces rather annoyingly. For some reason she was wishing for a fly swat.

The Blue Fairy deplored the loss of the memory potion that Emma had smashed, but the others couldn't agree on whether she'd done it deliberately or accidentally during the commotion. The fairy informed the Queen that she was unable to make another one. Until certain rare ingredients became available they couldn't bring Emma's missing memories back.

A tear fell down Snow's cheek. The Queen and Charming held each other and looked upon their daughter with sadness. Emma felt guilty for causing it.

"Alright," Emma sighed. "Let's say that I accept this whole theory for a second, that I really am the Sa... the you-know-what. Why did you bring me here?"

"There's a new threat," said Charming, somewhat evasively. "But don't worry about that for now. We'll deal with that after we restore your memories, Emma."

"There's something you're not telling me."

Snow smiled overly brightly. "We're just glad to see you again. We are your parents. You may not remember us but we've missed you every minute that you've been gone. I know that all you ever wished for was to find us."

"I need some time."

"Of course. Please don't give up hope, Emma."

_"The most important thing anyone can ever have is hope. Your mother told me to tell you that. It's why I'm here now..."_

It felt like she'd heard that somewhere, a long time ago. Who had said that to her?

Henry ran over and threw his arms around Snow's middle. "Miss Blanch- I mean, Grandma Snow, where's Mom? Not the one slouching over there on the step, the other one. Where's Regina? Is she at her castle? Can we go there? Now?"

"Who is this 'other mom' my son has," Emma grumbled, crossing her arms on her knees. "And where the hell was she when I was knee-deep in dirty diapers and defusing the worst tantrums you've ever seen."

Snow tried to hide the smile that nearly split her face, but it was shortlived. Emma noticed that something about this other mom that made her sad.

"Mom is gonna be annoyed that you let me have candy all the time." Henry grinned cheekily.

"Whatever. What's she gonna do - kill me?"

Snow and Charming exchanged a look that meant there was simply no way to have this conversation without it ending badly. What was going on here that was so terrible they didn't even want to tell her?

"Emma," began Snow. "Do you - um, do you remember Regina at all?"

Emma shrugged. "No. Why?"

"You should have one memory of her," said Charming.

"She came to visit you something like ten years ago?" said Snow. "She came to bring you a message and warn you that Hook would show up one day to bring you to us?"

Emma's mouth dropped open. "Wait - that fake social worker was my kid's mother? She showed up one day to chat and snoop around my apartment. Back when Henry was a baby and we were living in Phoenix. She came to see us. How did she get to my world?"

"She wasn't really there. Regina went under a curse in order to insert herself into your memory, Emma. But she only had enough magic to last for an hour."

Snow explained the particular effects of a Sleeping Curse for her benefit, but to Emma it sounded like a flimsy plan with low expected payoff. She couldn't appreciate how bad it was, even if she suspended her disbelief that it wasn't real in the first place. Henry must've known how dire the situation was because he was clearly devastated.

"My mom is in a sleeping curse?" cried Henry. "Why would she do that to herself! Her True Love was the stable boy and he's long dead. The only way to break it is with a kiss from her True Love. Now she'll never wake up!"

"Never?" repeated Emma, searching for confirmation from Snow. "Are you saying that this woman sacrificed not only her life but an eternity of nightmarish sleep to bring me a message. To give me hope. To spend a single hour with me and Henry?"

"Yes."

_Is she in love with me or something?_ Emma thought to herself. _That is romantic as hell. I could love her for that alone. Who IS this woman who would sacrifice herself for me?_

No-one had ever helped her in her entire life like that. When things were bad, when she used to cry about being tired from working night shifts or when she couldn't afford some toy Henry wanted that all the other kids had, when she used to go to bed every night wishing that they weren't alone, and when she hated herself for not being a better mother... she used to remember the woman's words. A reminder of hope that got her through tough times.

"Is she insane?" said Emma, shaking slightly with anger. "She drank poison knowing that she might never wake up? I want to see her."

"Emma-"

"Where is she?!" Emma demanded. "I have to see her. Take me to what'sername - Regina!"

"Do you think you can wake her?" said Henry hopefully. "Are you going to kiss her?"

"There has to be a way to wake her. If only so that I can tell her what a stupid sacrifice that was, giving up the rest of her damn life just so that I could stop feeling guilty hosting my little pity parties-of-one. How am I supposed to live with myself now, knowing what happened? She told me that she only had an hour but I didn't believe her. I kicked her out early. The last three minutes of her life. I am _not_ giving up until I repay that debt."

"Lets go!" said Henry. "You might be her True Love after all. Mom, you have to kiss my other mom."

Charming grabbed her shoulder when she jumped to her feet. "Wait, you can't-"

Emma glared. "Why."

"Because Regina isn't here anymore."

"I thought you said she was in a glass coffin and you guys were keeping her here. Where has she been moved to? It's not like she can go anywhere on her own, unless she sleepwalks. This Evil Queen sounds like she was a badass, she's probably capable of it. If only to piss me off by making me search the entire realm for her. Anyway, it doesn't matter, I will find her. She saved me, now it's my turn to save her. I'll find a way."

"Emma, I'm sorry," said Snow, reluctant to be the bearer of bad news. "But she's already been woken up."


	3. Chapter 3

**The visit 3**

**A/N: Wow! Thanks for the awesome response to the second part and for encouraging me to continue with this idea. There were lots of questions about who woke Regina and concerns about it being a certain someone... I'm not going to spoil the whole thing but this story is definitely SwanQueen.**

* * *

_Neverland, one year ago_

Emma sighed contentedly. She was sitting on the cool earth and leaning back against the rocks, her position concealed from most intrusions by thick greenery. It was the middle of the night and she'd snuck away from the others. She had her eyes closed, letting the sensations wash over her, feeling the tension build in her body completely under her control. Just a short time for her to get away mentally from the situation she was in.

The crunch of a footstep sounded nearby and she snapped out of it. Emma grabbed the sword sitting on the ground in front of her and jumped to her feet, ready for a fight.

"Emma, is that you?" It was Regina's voice.

She wasn't sure if she should be relieved that it wasn't Pan or one of the Lost Boys instead. Emma felt her face flame at being caught and forced herself to meet Regina's eyes, knowing that she looked dishevelled in a specific way.

"Yeah, it's me."

Regina smirked unkindly. "Now I see why we still haven't found our son yet. The leader of our gang of misfits is up half the night with her hand down her pants."

"That is NOT why," Emma said fiercely. She pointed at her with her sword. "You know what, Regina? I refuse to be embarrassed about this. My son is missing. I'm tired and hungry and frustrated because I've been stuck on this fucking island of insanity, sleeping three feet away from my parents for days. I need some comfort and a bit of time alone. I am not going to apologise for trying to cope. Not that you'd care about my wellbeing. You'd probably begrudge me food and water too."

Regina was clearly offended. "You assume I don't understand what you're going through? You think this is _my_ idea of a relaxing holiday? I'm camping out with the Charmings, who by the way are even more irritating than you if that's even possible, and I'm not able to use magic to find my son who is god-knows-where and being held captive by a smug teenager who clearly has daddy issues."

"Yeah, ok. I get it. This situation sucks for both of us."

"What are you doing out this far by yourself? Apart from the fact that it's dangerous, half of the adult men on this island are in love with you. Take your pick."

"I'm not interested. Maybe when I was a lot younger, but not for a long time."

"You mean-"

"Yeah, I do mean. I have no idea why I'm even telling you this, I don't have to justify who I do or do not want to have sex with to you. My parents don't even know. You are not to use this against me, Regina. Although I'm sure you'd get a kick out of breaking my mother's heart."

"Why would you think that I'd do that?"

"Because it's what you always do. God, does everything have to be an argument with you?"

"Perhaps I'm offended," said Regina offhand, glancing away. "I'm the only unattached woman on this island. Why haven't you propositioned me?"

Emma burst out laughing. "Are you serious? You're mad because I haven't hit on you for a midnight bootycall? You want me to ask just so that you can say no and rub it in my face? You hate me. Anyway, what are _you_ doing out here."

"Nothing."

"You're lying," Emma said easily. Then her eyes widened. "What a minute. Why would you be here in the middle of the night this far out. Are you - Oh my god, I bet you're out here too! For the same reason I am. You want time to yourself."

"So what if I do. I suppose you think I'm unfeeling and incapable of experiencing normal emotions?"

Emma shrugged pretend-thoughtfully. "No. The last thing you are is lacking in feelings, sometimes to the point of doing completely irrational stuff. The dating pool on this island is pretty shallow isn't it. Pity we're not back in Storybrooke huh? It'd be easier to find some privacy there or a partner at least."

"Not for me," said Regina shortly. "Everyone hates me, have you forgotten that fact? I assure you that I haven't."

"Come on, you're pretty hot you know. I bet there's someone out there who doesn't mind that other stuff. Who can resist a bad girl in bed?"

Regina's lips parted in shock. She actually looked hurt and it took Emma a second to realise what she'd implied. What she'd said must've really cut her deep if she couldn't come back at her with her own ascerbic rejoinder. Usually they could hit each other with anything they had and count on the other fighting back. Regina gave her a hateful glare, crossed her arms and started walking away.

"Wait, I'm sorry!" Emma blurted out. "That came out really badly, I didn't mean- Wait! Regina!"

She jogged a few steps to catch up. Emma reached for Regina's elbow but the other woman wrenched her arm away.

"Stop stop. I'm sorry ok? I didn't mean it like you're thinking. What I meant was not to give up hope, when you find someone who really loves you they won't care if you're hot in bed or if you've got a shitty past. Look, if I tell you something really embarrassing will you forgive me for being an idiot?"

Regina ignored her but stopped walking. Emma swayed from foot to foot, wondering whether she really was crazy for even considering telling her what she was about to admit. She pulled at her grey cutoff to straighten it out from where it'd been bunched up, but that only served to remind her of the person she'd been imagining kiss her torso. She knew she was going to regret this.

"Uh. It was- it was you I was thinking about before. When I was- you know- before."

Regina seemed surprised but not entirely impressed. "Really, dear? Am I supposed to be flattered by that."

"Uh yeah," Emma said in a 'duh' voice. "I could've gone with Jessica Biel you know. Obviously I'd prefer the real thing, but I've got about as much chance with _her_ as I have with you."

"And you know that how? You haven't even asked me."

Emma's jaw dropped. "You _want _me to ask you? I can't tell if you mean it. Nah, I can't believe it. There's no way you're attracted to me."

Regina's voice dropped about an octave. "I might be. I think I see a solution to our mutual problem."

Emma returned it with a flirty look. "Oh really? Alright then. I'm willing to explore this whatever-this-is between us to see what we've got, but uh it's not just a sex thing for me so don't go thinking that. It's kinda complicated between us, especially now. So after we rescue Henry and get back to Storybrooke and when everything is back to normal I'll ask you out properly. We'll get together somehow. That is if we don't end up arguing ourselves to death here on this island."

"I'd like that. After we save Henry," said Regina, sealing the deal. She smiled weakly. "I miss him. I'm... afraid of losing him. I lost someone once before, I don't want to go through it again."

"You won't lose him. Neither of us will. We're gonna get him back."

Regina still had a shine in her eyes and she startled when Emma put a hand to her cheek. She was stiff at first when Emma wrapped her arms around her and drew her close. After a few seconds Emma felt the woman in her arms melt softly and then noticed hands on her hips.

"What are we doing," said Regina softly.

"This," Emma paused and spoke near her ear, "Is what's known as a hug. It happens sometimes when two people want to take comfort in each other. I think you need this right now. We both do."

"I suppose it's not entirely unpleasant. You are also in need of a shower, dear. It's been days since your bellyflop into the ocean."

"Excuse me, it was a graceful swan dive," Emma said wryly. "You need a shower too. Hey, Regina. Will you do something for me?"

"That very much depends on whether I want to or not."

"Keep your shirt unbuttoned. It's hot on this island and that's a pretty camisole you're wearing."

Emma stepped back to release her and went to head back to the camp. She heard Regina ask behind her, "You're going back now?"

"Yep," she said. Emma stopped and turned half towards her. "Because I really want to kiss you, but I don't want it to be here in the middle of a stinky jungle. Our first kiss is going to be a good one. Something to remember."

Regina tried to hide her smile but her eyes betrayed her. "You're less charming than you think you are."

"As if. You look pretty charmed to me." Emma smirked and walked away...

They'd shared a moment when we they were in that jungle alone and it seemed so easy to make the deal, to act on an attraction they'd both felt for a long time. But when they got back to camp Mary Margaret was awake and she was perceptive enough to notice their coming back together. The reminder of who they were and why they were in Neverland came to mind and suddenly things were back to normal between them. The bickering, fighting, jealousy, and sass were all back in equal measure.

It was probably only wishful thinking or her imagination but as Emma had held her she'd thought she could feel every cell of Regina's body saying: _Don't let go, don't let go..._

Her heart gave its answer silently.

_I won't_.

* * *

_Fairytale land, Summer Palace_

"Oh, she's awake?" Emma frowned. "I guess there's nothing for me to do then. Heroic quest cancelled."

"I'm glad Mom is ok," said Henry. "But I don't understand. I thought only True Love's Kiss could break a Sleeping Curse. How did she wake up?"

Snow and Charming exchanged a quick glance. "We assume she was kissed."

"By who?" said Emma suspiciously.

"Robin Hood."

"What! Robin _Hood_?" she repeated. "As in the guy who robs from the rich to give to the poor? That's gotta be wrong. Everyone in the world knows that Robin Hood and Maid Marian are meant to be together. I get that there's been some chinese-whispers interpretation of fairytales between here and the real world, but whoever heard of Robin Hood and the Evil Queen? That sounds dumb just saying it. What about Marian? Who does she end up with now. Did she run away with the Dish? Or the Spoon."

Snow ignored the sarcasm. "Marian died some time ago. Robin is now a widower with a little boy. Apparently, Regina was told as a young woman that he was her soulmate, but she was too afraid to pursue it back then and never went to meet him. I suppose she's looking for her second chance now."

"Ah, so they're a match because both of their spouses are dead?" said Emma, examining her supposed mother closely. "You don't seem certain about all of this. When did it happen? This supposedly magical kiss."

"Earlier today."

"You mean Emma only missed it by a few hours?" cried Henry. He pushed Emma in the shoulder. "Mom! You shouldn't have kicked Hook out the first time. If you had believed him we might have made it here in time."

"Ah!" Emma flinched and frowned at him. It was still weird to hear him call her by her first name. "Whatever, kid. No shoving."

"Can we go see Mom? Please?"

"You might want to try her castle," said Snow. "But there's something you should know before you leave. Robin has announced that he and Regina are engaged to be married."

"Already?! Seriously?" said Emma. "Didn't they only meet today when she woke up? I thought you said she never went to meet him."

She checked with Henry to see how he was taking the news that his mother was remarrying and it wasn't looking good. The poor kid only just remembered his other parent and now he learns that she's run off to marry some random guy her son has never even met? Emma wasn't sure if she believed any of this yet, but she knew that Henry believed it and he thought this other woman was his mother. He had to be upset and confused.

Emma put her arm around Henry's shoulder and said to her parents, "Why would Regina - why would _anyone_ - agree to that? They got engaged straight away because of a kiss and some fairy magic that told her he was her soulmate? Well that is STUPID. You can't marry someone you don't know, even if it is fate. What if fate matches you up with someone horrible? Who IS this guy? He could be anyone. How do we know this Robin Hood is as charitable as his story says?"

"We met Robin," said Charming. "He seemed an ok guy. Why do you care so much, it's-"

"Don't say it's none of my business," warned Emma. "He's marrying my kid's other parent, I have a right to make sure he's not an asshole."

Henry frowned and shook his head resolutely. "I don't want Mom to marry an asshole."

"See!" said Emma. "Henry agrees with me."

Snow levelled her daughter with disapproval. "And where did he learn that kind of language, Emma Swan."

"Hey, he goes to public school. He didn't learn everything from me. Maybe his other mom is the potty mouth."

* * *

_Dining hall_

Snow and Charming went off to attend to some urgent Royal business and they ordered the servants to take Henry and Emma to the hall for some food. The kitchen must've been informed that the guests were a Prince and Princess because there was an amazing spread of different foods waiting on the long dining table for them.

Emma was stunned when the head cook came over to personally apologise for the meagre offerings. Due to the attacks on the realm some supplies had become scarce apparently, but Emma was surprised to hear it. _This_ was meagre? She had to restrain herself from asking pointedly whether everyone in the realm ate like this or just the Royals.

She ate only enough to be polite. Emma was still obsessing over what she'd learned about Regina and her backstory. It didn't sit right with her at all and she didn't know why she couldn't let go. She didn't even know this woman but she had the urge to track her down so that she could shake some sense into her.

Henry was attacking the sweets and desserts when Snow came in and pulled Emma off to the side. But before she could say anything, Emma started in on her again.

"What should we do about this," whispered Emma. "We can't let her marry him. Didn't you tell her what a mistake this was?"

"Believe me," said Snow. "Regina would not take kindly to my interference in her love life. Perhaps I shouldn't have told you as much as I did."

"No, you did the right thing telling me. Someone has to do something about this. It looks like it's going to have to be me."

"Emma, can I ask you..." Snow bit her lips. "Are you in love with Regina?"

"No, how can I be," she said defensively. "We've only met once and that was twelve years ago. I don't even remember it very well. Ok yeah, I know how this looks but I'm not doing it out of jealousy, how could I be when I don't even know her?"

"You used to know her, but you don't remember it now. There always was something between the two of you, apart from the competitiveness and the fighting over Henry that is. Both of you were obsessed with each other. I used to think sometimes that maybe there was more to it than hate. She sacrificed a lot for you and I'm not just talking about the Sleeping Curse. She gifted you with new memories and entrusted you with her son. I've witnessed Regina in love before, she's willing to do whatever it takes to avenge a loss. If you were in love with her, you didn't tell anyone. I knew you for some time, Emma, but you never confided in me."

"Uh, so I never told you the um, gay thing? Would the other me be annoyed at me right now for outing myself?"

Snow shook her head imperceptibly. "I don't know. Maybe you thought you couldn't trust me with your secret."

"Yeah well, with your record of secret-keeping maybe that was wise."

Snow seemed chastened, maybe even a little sad.

Emma had never had to come out to a family member before, she didn't fear rejection because she never had anyone in her life who would care. She told Henry when he was fairly young, way before she started dating again, and he took it in stride the way innocent kids do before they learn to think otherwise. All he said was "Ok, Mommy" and went back to drawing with crayons.

Now, she'd unknowingly come out to her own mother and didn't know what reaction to expect.

"So, uh, are you ok with it?" said Emma. "Not that it matters if you disown me, since I don't remember you anyway."

"You're my daughter. All I've ever wanted for you is to be happy and it doesn't matter to me who you find love with as long as you're safe. I won't deny that Regina and I have a complicated history, but please keep in mind that she is dangerous. Especially when her heart is involved."

"I'm not going there to wreck things for her. If it turns out that she loves this guy and he treats her well, then I'll step off. But I want to know why she would sacrifice herself for me. I have to know."

"You think she might be in love with you."

Emma fidgeted. The idea had occurred to her of course. Regina had given up everything to make a nice memory in Emma's mind, one that amounted to ten years' worth of hope. She couldn't imagine why else someone would do something like that if not for love… And before she could stop herself, she'd already begun to hope for it.

"I have no idea how she feels. She's the one with our memories, not me. But I can't help that she got in my head and now I want to make sure she's ok. I owe her that at least."

* * *

After travelling by portal to a fantasy land where fairytales and magic were real and ending up finding her long-lost birth parents, Emma thought nothing else could be a bigger shock. But she was wrong. The four of them were going over the past in detail in the throne room when they were interrupted.

"Mommy! Daddy!" A sweet little voice came from the door.

The patter of feet flew across the hall carrying a tiny girl who ran and launched herself at Charming. He caught her easily and swung the giggling toddler up into his arms. She was about two years old with fair skin, blue eyes, and a tussle of shining blonde ringlets that fell onto her shoulders.

In short, she looked exactly like Emma.

"Hello, princess," said Charming to the girl. "What are you doing running about the castle with no shoes on? Where's nanny?"

The little girl held out her hands in a shrug but there was more mischief than innocence in it.

Snow smiled and glanced at Emma. "Anna, there's someone here we'd like you to meet. Do you remember we told you about your sister? That she was far away but one day she'd come back to us?"

"Sistuh? Where."

Snow put a hand on the baby to get her to look around and pointed to where Emma and Henry were waiting. The little girl watched them with wide eyes.

"This is your big sister Emma and that's her son Henry. Do you want to say hello? Say 'Hello Emma'."

"He'wo Emma."

Emma made an effort to smile. "Hi Anna. It's uh, great to finally meet you."

"Hi Anna," said Henry. "Wow, she looks just like you, Emma."

"We told her about you," Snow said to Emma. "And Henry too. We wanted her to know her family. You're her favourite bedtime story, she loves hearing it over and over."

Anna got distracted easily, she reached for her mother and tried to launch herself out of Charming's arms. Snow only just caught her around the middle. She shifted the girl onto her hip.

"Anna! No swan dives, please. James, for heaven's sake, you can't let her do that anymore. She could fall."

"She's fine, my love," said Charming. "She's a cheeky little monkey, aren't you?"

Snow and Henry sat on the rug to play games with the baby. The little girl took to her nephew immediately and she smiled and giggled at whatever he said. Snow and Charming were sneaking looks at Emma occasionally. She was sitting by herself a short distance away from the others.

Emma watched the lovely homey scene feeling like her reactions were under a microscope and her parents were the scientists. Even though she was a mother herself and she'd had a two year old at some point in the past, she was awkward and unsure about interacting with Anna. She couldn't think of a single thing to say, even though babies were easy to entertain. All you had to do was pull a funny face or do something silly and it'd bring a smile to their chubby cheeks.

But she couldn't do it.

She'd wished all her life to find her parents. When she had a spare moment in between working and raising Henry she used to trawl missing person sites on the internet, trying to find any clue about them. Her birth certificate and the hospital where she was taken after she was found were dead ends. There was simply nothing to go on.

Now she knew why her search had been futile. She'd found them for the second time in her adult life and they were nothing like she'd imagined.

_I don't know what I expected,_ thought Emma. _Did I think that when I found them I'd magically turn back into a child and we could start over?_

She definitely hadn't expected them to have had another child. The orphan in her couldn't resist the idea that they'd given her up because they hadn't wanted _her_, not because they hadn't wanted a child. She knew now that it wasn't true, they'd been forced to give her up because of the curse.

It would be less difficult to deal with if they hadn't replaced her with a kid that looked just like her. It was like looking at a version of her past that she'd never had. It was too easy to imagine how it could've been.

When she was this girl's age she was living with a foster family, the same ones who sent her back when they replaced her with their own child. It made her feel like she'd always be second best, no matter which foster home she was in she'd always be inferior to any biokids the parents happened to have. Now, she'd found her real parents and she was _still_ second best, even though she was their biological daughter.

This girl was living the life she should have had.

Emma couldn't help it. She was angry. Then guilty about feeling angry. Then confused about feeling guilty.

_Ugh, I hate myself!_ _I'm jealous of an innocent little girl who had nothing to do with what happened before she was born. It's not her fault so stop acting like a child. You're an adult, you should be over this by now. Grow the fuck up._

But her harsh self-remonstrance wasn't effective enough. As soon as her father came over to sit with her on the step, she knew what was coming. He was here to give her a daddy-daughter talk and she had no intention of letting him get through it unscathed.

"So you guys had another kid, huh?" she said. "She's cute. Congrats."

"Emma, I know how this looks," said Charming gently. "I know what you're thinking."

"I'm not thinking anything."

"We weren't trying to replace you, you're our daughter too and you always will be. You've been lost to us for a long time and we are so grateful that we got the chance during our last year in Storybrooke to get to know you. We are so proud of the woman you are and we love you. Nothing will ever change that."

Emma nodded quickly. "I know. I mean- I don't know, but I assume that this is something the other me would've known."

"It's ok if you're upset with us."

"I'm not upset," she denied it unconvincingly. "Before I was born you guys expected that you'd get to see me grow up, that you'd get to experience all the firsts and the joys of raising a child. But you both missed out on that and you wanted another chance at being parents. It's only natural. I understand. I'm a parent too, I would've regretted missing out on Henry's childhood."

Charming accepted it sadly. "You're upset because we've been given a second chance at being parents but you'll never have a second chance at a childhood."

"Hey, at least this way you can start fresh right? With a cute little kid who hasn't been screwed up yet. Like me."

"That isn't it. We always intended to have more children."

"It doesn't matter anyway. I'm thirty years old, I don't need to be parented. There's nothing for you guys to do, I'm done. I missed out."

"We never wanted to give you up, Emma," he pleaded with her to understand. "We sent you away to give you your best chance, so that you could come back one day and save us. I need to know that you believe that. Can you forgive us?"

"Sure," said Emma, deceptively light in tone. "I was tempted to give Henry away because I thought someone else out there could give him a better chance in life than I could. I did it for him. You guys didn't give me up for my sake though. You gave me up for the kingdom and that's great, noble in fact. But let me tell you something: I'm a mother, and if I were ever asked to sacrifice my son, or to choose between him and the entire world I'd say 'no, fuck you. I choose him.'"

Emma leapt to her feet and left, heading for the balcony so that she could get away. She wasn't too quick to miss seeing the pain in her father's eyes. She'd done enough damage and her anger had already caused enough hurt. To both of her parents.

* * *

It was dusk now and a startling sunset of reds and oranges was visible through the castle windows. Snow and Charming had been called away periodically throughout the afternoon to deal with castle business and military matters. Emma and Henry had been in Fairytale Land for a number of hours now but they were still no closer to finding out more about the 'dangerous threat', which was apparently the reason for bringing them there.

Henry had done most of the questioning, he pestered his grandparents over and over in an attempt to break them.

"What's happened since you guys got back here?"

"What is the great evil the Blue Fairy was talking about?"

"Why is everyone in danger?"

"From who?"

But the boy's efforts were to no avail. They were all deflected in favour of waiting until Emma's memories had been restored. Henry was smart enough to realise that whatever the problem was, Emma must be pivotal to the solution.

"Where's Rumpelstiltzskin? Is he alive after all? My mom is the most powerful after him. Why would she leave if she was needed here to help save everyone? Why isn't Mom's magic enough to defeat whoever-it-is?"

"Because she doesn't have-" Snow stopped herself there. "Henry, the entire kingdom is under attack. Regina has to protect the region around the Winter Castle, that's why she left."

"But why is this happening. Can't she and Emma use magic together?"

Emma jerked around in surprise, having been eavesdropping on the conversation. She caught Snow's eye and let the question hang in the air, but Snow said nothing. _I have magic?_

Her father returned leading Anna by the hand. She ran to her mother excitedly and jumped up and down on the spot. Charming explained that Anna had gone potty all by herself again and Snow gave her daughter some gentle praise. Nobody could help smiling when Snow translated the little girl's disjointed two-word sentences as "she's asking if Emma goes potty like a big girl too".

Anna was too shy to go near her big sister but apparently there was some hero-worship going on.

Henry nudged Emma in the ribs and said under his breath, "Should I tell them you get the shits with your boss?"

"Cut it out, kid," she hissed back. "Stop swearing. My parents already think I raised you in a ghetto. You better not say anything like that when we go find Regina either."

"We're still going?" Henry said in surprise. He looked over to see if the grandparents noticed them conspiring but they were busy with Anna.

Emma grinned back. "The heroic quest is back on, kid. We gotta save your other mom from her own stupidity."

_BANG!_

Suddenly the entire room shook as though a large projectile had slammed into the castle wall nearby. It wasn't hard enough to knock them off their feet, but powerful enough to indicate that they were in serious danger from a direct hit. Emma grabbed Henry by the shoulder and Snow gathered Anna in her arms to shield the baby when she started crying out of fear.

"What the hell was that?" cried Emma.

"Guards!" ordered Charming. Three appeared instantly. "Ring the bell! Call to arms, every able-bodied soldier. We're ready for this."

"Escort all of the children, the injured, and the elderly down to the bunkers," said Snow. "And send for the High Constable."

Emma ran over to the window to see where the attack had come from. She almost expected to see tanks on the ground or a terrorist with an RPG over his shoulder. Instead she saw dark forms flying in the sky against the sunset but couldn't make out what they were, except that they seemed larger than birds and smaller than fighter jets.

Charming shouted at her. "Keep away from the window. It's a flying monkey attack."

Emma obeyed and joined the others but she was a little bemused. "Flying monkeys? As in the cackling fiends that looked like bad puppets from the Wizard of Oz movie?"

"It's no laughing matter," said Snow impatiently. "They're armed magically. A few precision strikes could take out half the castle with those boulders. They destroyed the gate and the footbridge last time."

"Then we have a problem."

"Yes, we can try to fight them off again. The last attack was months ago, but it seems she's upped her timetable."

"Who?"

Another blast hit the turret above and a shower of dust fell from parts of the ceiling. The rock walls were holding so far but one hit and they would crumble into a pile. Somewhere in the castle the warning bells began to ring.

A guard in more formal livery and bars of rank entered the room and delivered a note to Snow. All it said was 'SURRENDER HER'. The commander-in-chief stood at rigid stance to give his report.

"The regions are being attacked one by one," said the High Constable. "The Autumn Palace has already fallen. We're next."

"You know what to do," said Snow, as a dismissal. The commander-in-chief jerked a single nod and marched swiftly out of the room. She crumpled the note into her fist.

"What do we do?" said Henry.

"We can fight this, right?" asked Emma. "You said you'd been attacked before and survived."

Snow paused to give her husband a look of fear and worry, enough to make Emma worried herself about whatever was happening. She must've come to a decision. Snow practically threw Anna into Emma's arms and pushed her and Henry towards the door.

Anna squawked in protest and Snow kissed her cheek.

"Anna, my baby, you have to go with your sister for a while ok? Henry, Emma, you need to leave. There's a way out of the castle that no-one else knows about. It's in Anna's room. When you get outside keep going and don't stop."

"Head away from the setting sun," warned Charming. "Find Regina. She can help you."

"But-" Emma protested. "We can't leave you. I just found you."

Snow's stricken eyes filled. "Emma! Get yourselves out. Take care of the children."

"But I-" she hesitated, wrapping her arms tighter around the bundle in her arms and shooting a glance at Henry beside her. He was scared.

"Emma!" ordered Charming. "Do as your mother says. Please, go now."

"Ok," she said weakly.

Emma grabbed Henry's hand and ran. She looked back once and saw her parents arming themselves with swords and bows and quivers from a hidden cache under the floor. Somehow she knew it'd be the last time she ever saw them.

* * *

The attack continued. Every minute or so the castle would shudder from another blast, sometimes one that was dangerously close. Guards and yeoman with wooden weapons and knives filled the corridors, racing from position to position to escape the destruction. Walls were damaged, leaving piles of rubble everywhere and dust clouding in the air.

"Anna!" said Emma urgently, while she was running. She stopped in her tracks at an intersection of long hallways and gripped Henry's hand tightly. "Anna! Do you know where your room is? I know you're frightened, sweetie. Help us find the way out?"

But Anna was too terrified to speak, she had her hands clapped over her ears and her eyes squeezed shut. She buried her face in Emma's shoulder and clung to her neck.

Emma coughed. "Henry, which way?"

A commotion sounded behind them. They started running again, taking the rightmost arm because the left had filled with archers. Henry dropped her hand and ran ahead. He hadn't gone far when one of the doors caught his eye.

"Mom! Look," he cried. He was pointing to a door with a purple poster stuck on the front. It was covered in rainbows and unicorn stickers and in big block letters it had the name:

ANNA SWAN

"That's it," Emma said in relief. The three of them ducked inside and slammed the door shut behind them. It was definitely a little girl's room, there were toys everywhere and a pretty wooden crib in the center. The walls were painted with scenes from a fairy grotto and there were papers with kid's drawings displayed on all of them.

"Now what?" asked Henry, looking around. "Is there a secret passageway?"

"I'll check. Henry, grab that thing from her bed."

Emma went straight to the fireplace and bashed every knob and jut she could find. Nothing worked. Then she noticed a carving in the wood, some sort of water bird, and shoved her thumb into it. A loud clank announced that the floor of the fireplace had fallen away, revealing their exit.

Henry handed her a purple plushy toy which she held near Anna's hand. The little girl only moved enough to tuck it under her wing.

"You go first," said Emma, still panting from the earlier running. "I'll follow with Anna."

"Mom," said Henry anxiously. "Are we gonna be ok?"

Emma smiled at him, stamping the fear back down inside herself. "Of course, kid. We'll be right behind you."

After he'd disappeared, Emma was climbing into the fireplace when she heard shouting in the corridor. She wondered if enemies had breached and flooded into the castle. Her head whipped around at the sound of a booming voice.

_"WHERE IS THE PRINCESS? FIND HER."_

"Anna, it's ok, I've got you," Emma soothed. She placed a kiss on top of the smooth blonde head. "You're so brave. Keep your eyes closed and hold tight to me ok? Let's get out of here."

When the door burst open they were gone.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Visit 4**

**A/N:** Thanks for the wonderful comments, I really appreciate the encouragement for this story :). This chapter has been delayed because I've been busy with job hunt stuff. Enjoy! Please review with your theories/questions/OQ rage. No-one has said it in a review yet, but can you guys guess why Emma's sister is called Anna?

* * *

_Storybrooke, one year ago_

Emma had purposefully avoided going anywhere near the diner at the appointed time. She wasn't even in the same street or at Mary Margaret's or at the station, all of which were locations too close to Granny's where Neal would be waiting for her. She was sitting near the harbour, wrapped up in her jacket, gloves, and beanie, with her hair whipping in her face every time the wind picked up.

Technically she'd never agreed to go in the first place. She hadn't wanted to but Neal insisted. She could picture him waiting there, losing hope as his coffee cooled with every passing minute. She wondered if he actually expected her to turn up. She felt guilty.

_I have nothing to be guilty about,_ she thought crossly. _So what if his feelings are hurt because I didn't turn up for coffee. You know what he didn't turn up for? Me. He left me for ten years and now he expects to pick up where we left off?_

He'd moved on, he was engaged not so long ago. Well, Emma had moved on too. Several times. Actually, moving on was her bad habit. Now she was so good at it that she never became attached to anyone in the first place. The only exception being Storybrooke.

But she'd loved him once and the pain of that was still in her heart like scar tissue from a surgery gone wrong. Even though she still loved him in a way, getting back with him would mean she'd have to face all of that messy pain again. They'd have to unpack all of that baggage in order to travel forward… and she simply didn't want to. She couldn't explain it to him any other way. She couldn't be with him now. Too much had happened and remembering it made her angry. She'd changed. She wasn't ready to explain her real reasons.

_Oh hey, Neal, the truth is I'm kinda sorta gay now. Can you please not tell my parents though? They've got their hearts set on us getting back together and they really - REALLY- would not like the one I'm actually head over heels for. I'm not ready for them to know._

It was odd that her parents were pushing her towards the guy who knocked her up as a teenager and abandoned her. Perhaps they suspected that her persuasions lay elsewhere now and that was even worse.

Emma took her phone out of the back pocket of her jeans and stared at it. She scrolled through her contacts list until one of the names was highlighted.

She wanted to call her. They'd made a deal in the jungle back in Neverland that they'd try getting together when things got back to normal. Emma had promised to ask Regina out on a date, a proper one. She was trying to tell her that she wanted to attempt something real, the start of something long-lasting, definitely not a one-night thing to break the tension that had always been between them.

The question was: were things back to normal yet?

Not really. Would they ever be? Something was up with Henry, she could feel it in her gut. She couldn't be certain but it felt like something other than jealousy that their son had gone with Regina instead of her for his first night back. She hadn't wanted to let him out of her sight either. His behaviour didn't sit right with her.

Emma knew it was petty but she liked it when Henry chose her over Regina. No doubt Regina felt the same way, both of them knew that about the other as well. It was a perpetual competition for the title of "favourite Mom". After a year in Storybrooke, Emma wasn't used to losing. She had more sympathy for Regina these days, though the Mayor could certainly give at least as good as she got in the revenge department.

They were squabbling over him already.

Emma typed a message into her phone. She rolled her eyes and erased her first attempt as it was full of typos. Then did the same with her second and third. It took her nearly ten minutes to compose her message because she was trying to decide what to say.

_Hi Regina. Is Henry ok today?_

The terse reply came quickly.

_Yes. Why wouldn't he be? _

_He was out of sorts yesterday. I was just wondering if he was back to his old self._

_He's been through a lot recently, that's why he's upset. I was a single mother for ten years, I'm perfectly capable of taking care of my son without interference from another parent. Especially one who has little to no experience taking care of a child._

_I didn't mean it like that. I'm worried. Sorry for how it sounded. Friends? _

There was a long wait. Clearly Regina still hadn't gotten over the credulity she'd expressed in Neverland over the idea that she wanted to be friends of sorts. Emma couldn't resist sending another message.

_Let me know what time to pick him up today and I'll come over to your place._

_When or if my son asks for you I'll call you._

Emma frowned to herself, wondering why the hell Regina was being so snippy. The conversation had gotten way out of hand. She wasn't trying to pick a fight with her or threaten her desire to spend time with their son. Regina was always looking to deliberately misinterpret everything she said. She hadn't meant to imply those things at all. Clearly any notion of cooperation they'd had in Neverland had been lost overboard on the journey back.

She was just about to call Regina and try to apologise and/or reason with the stubborn woman when she realised she was not longer alone.

"Isn't Granny's that way?" said a familiar voice to her left.

Emma turned her head and squinted. It was David. No doubt come to ask why she hadn't presented herself for her 'date'.

* * *

_Fairytale Land_

The passageway in Anna's fireplace turned out to be a long slide that wound around through the castle and sent them sailing through a chute. Emma's feet hit the ground outside at speed and she barely managed to keep her footing.

"Mom! This way." Henry was a few paces ahead and waving his hand.

He took off into the forest and Emma followed at a run. She was slowed down of course by carrying a twenty-five pound weight in the form of a child. As they ran, Emma kept her eye on the surroundings and checked behind them to see if anyone had pursued them down the slide. She had no idea if there was an ambush waiting in the woods ahead but they had no choice other than to keep going.

"Henry," she panted, trying to catch her breath and talk as well. She gained on her son and grabbed his hand, leaving her with none free. "We need to veer left. Sunset's on the right."

"Why do you think we have to stay away from the west?" said Henry, who was puffing too.

"The Witch?"

"Maybe. It fits. But what does she want?"

Emma glared and adjusted Anna's weight. "Something she's not getting."

"Wait! What's that noise?" said Henry.

A loud rumbling in the background had them skidding to a stop. They turned just in time to see the castle battlements collapsing in the distance behind them. The entire front wall of the castle fell into a pile of rock sections and caused an enormous cloud of dust. Henry and Emma watched in awed horror, which only grew when they realised that Anna had raised her head and seen it too.

"Mommy?" the toddler said. "Daddy."

"Emma," Henry's voice shook. "W-would they have survived that?"

Emma's heart sank and she swallowed hard. "They - you know, they might not have been in the battlements. Maybe they didn't stay to fight, they might've gone to the bunkers with everyone else. I'm sure they did..."

Henry's eyes dropped to the ground. She put her arm around Henry to hug him and heard him clear his throat. Emma knew her son would be trying to put on a brave face and not cry.

She cleared her throat. "We have to keep going, kids."

She and Henry started jogging again, this time in silence. They each stored their emotions away for later, getting out of danger took priority right now. The woods were quiet apart from the noise of their footsteps and steady breathing. It was a while before they could head to the left though, because the rocky steeps prevented it.

In the distance behind them the flying monkeys circled the castle and nearby grounds as though searching for something.

In the failing light they switched to walking until Emma declared that they should stop for a rest. It would be pointless trying to go further in the dark. In truth, her arms were aching from carrying Anna and her lungs had been burning for several miles. If she'd been at the gym she would've stopped ages ago, but running to survive had pushed her through the pain in her muscles and chest.

"Over here, Mom."

Henry found a recess in the rock formation where they could sleep with some cover for protection. Emma set Anna down for a minute so she could take off her jacket and sweater to use as pillows or for warmth. Then she sat with her back against the wall and held out her arms for the baby. Anna fell asleep in her arms straight away and Henry laid down on the ground next to his mother with her jacket under his head.

"Mom, why are they after us," he whispered.

"I think they want Anna," said Emma softly. She rubbed circles on the sleeping baby's back which was now covered by her sweater. Her other hand was laid protectively on Henry's shoulder.

"What if they come while we're all asleep?"

"I'll stay up. Try to get some sleep, Henry."

As exhausted as Emma was, she was far too anxious to fall asleep and had no trouble keeping her promise for almost the whole night. Sentry duty was far easier when you were hypervigilant because two children's lives were at stake. She fell asleep only as the sky began to lighten.

When she woke up a short time later the baby was gone from her lap.

* * *

Emma jolted awake with a start, as if she'd had a nightmare. But she hadn't been in a deep enough sleep to be dreaming. The real nightmare was what had happened last night and then everything came flooding back. The portal, her parents, her sister, the attack... She sighed and rubbed her eyes.

Her arm muscles and legs were stiff and it hurt to move. She shifted herself and realised that her jeans felt uncomfortable for some reason. They were wet on the front and down one side. Why was she-

"Anna!" she gasped, suddenly remembering. There was a second where her heart stopped (probably shortening her life span by a day) before she saw the little girl standing right next to her. Anna's chin was wobbling and she looked pitifully sad, staring at her soundlessly with big teary eyes. Emma was relieved to see her sister safe, she surmised what'd happened and leaned over to brush her hand over the blonde curls.

"It's ok, Anna," she whispered. "Nevermind. These things happen."

During the night when the woods had turned near-silent Emma had heard the quiet sound of a stream running nearby. She woke Henry and got him to carry her other clothes and Anna's purple plush toy so that they could go in search of water. It turned out to be not very far away and right in their path. In fact, if they hadn't stopped to sleep and kept running in the dark instead, they would've charged sightlessly into the water.

Emma cupped her hand for Anna to drink from and then she and Henry took their fill. She reminded him to drink up in preparation for a long day of walking since they couldn't be sure to find water again so easily.

She noticed Anna squirming uncomfortably so Emma removed the toddler's wet underwear and swished it around in the stream. She told Anna to hold her dress up and then used handfuls of water to give her lower body a wash. Going around all day with wee on her skin would've been very irritating for the baby and it wasn't like Emma could pop into a nearby pharmacy to pickup diaper rash cream. She peeled off her own tanktop and and used that as a towel.

"There," said Emma. "That feels better doesn't it? All fresh."

"All fesh," repeated Anna.

When Emma went to wrap the shirt around Anna's bottom as a makeshift diaper the little girl shook her head 'No!' Children could be very proud of their new-found independence and the last thing she wanted to do was take anything away from her or shame her for an accident.

"Ok. Does Mommy put you in big girl pants in the day and diapers at night?" asked Emma.

Anna nodded seriously.

"You are a big girl, aren't you. Well, you can't put the wetties back on for a while. So you'll have to free-breeze it. Let me know when you need to go potty. There's a good girl."

It would be a warm enough day by the looks of it so Emma put her shirt back on and tucked the wet cloth into her back pocket. She saw Henry coming back from downstream with something hidden in his hands.

"Hey Anna, look what I found," said Henry.

Emma narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What are you holding, kid?"

Henry bent down and opened his hands carefully to show Anna. "See, it's a frog. Frogs go 'ribbit ribbit' and they like lily pads. Can you say frog?"

"Fog," said Anna in a tone of wonder. She pointed at the green-skinned amphibian. "My fog?"

"I found it under the rocks over there near a pond. Isn't that cool?"

"Cool. My fog."

Emma got up and decided it was time to leave. "Henry, release the frog and gather our things. We have to get moving."

"Aw, Mom, can't we keep it."

"Not unless we can eat it for breakfast. This isn't the time to be adopting random wildlife as pets. Who knows, in this place that frog might be a prince in disguise. Let it go."

"I want fog!" Anna shouted.

"Woah." Emma was taken aback by the outburst. "Okaaay, I guess the frog's coming with us. Henry, please try to lose that thing the next time she falls asleep. Maybe she'll forget about it."

Anna pouted grumpily when Emma picked her up and settled her on her hip. "Fog."

* * *

The sun was blazing hot and by now the tallest turrets of the Summer Palace were barely visible through the gaps in the rock faces far behind them. The stream meandered away into the forest and then toward their path multiple times as though it knew they would require water every few hours.

It was too tiring to run since none of them had eaten since the previous day and they needed to conserve energy. Henry didn't mention his grumbling stomach for a while but Anna was hungry and she began to fuss and ask for her mother. Emma carried her until she cried herself into a fitful nap. She and Henry discussed their food situation in a joking way only, wondering whether Katniss Everdeen was around to catch them something to eat.

Emma was very worried and hiding it from the kids so they wouldn't be alarmed. They could survive on water for days as long as they followed that stream, and as a strong adult she could probably last for a while without food. But the children couldn't.

Emma had found and lost her parents in the one day. It hurt so much and that surprised her because she had only interacted with them for a few hours. She was an orphan again and so was her little sister. She'd never forgive herself for being jealous of her sibling or for arguing with her parents and wasting the short time they had together. The last thing her mother said to her was "take care of the children" and she'd be damned if she didn't fulfill that last wish.

Anna woke a while later and demanded: "I want down now". She toddled along slowly beside them, getting distracted by flowers or rocks as happily as though they were on a walk in the park. Even though they made slow progress, Emma figured it was the least of two evils to let her walk by herself for a while rather than carry her as she was screaming bloody murder. It took all of her motherly skills to keep Anna entertained, she made silly talk and swung the girl around by the arms and sang songs. Henry snickered at her when she forgot the words to some of the nursery rhymes so they turned it into a competition of inventing new ones.

Eventually even Henry needed to feel like his complaints were being heard.

"It's hot," said Henry, scuffing his feet in the scrub. "I'm tired. I'm hungry. How much longer?"

"I dunno, kid. You're doing great, thanks for putting up a brave front with all of this. It's probably not too far from here. How big can this place possibly be?"

"If it turns out that we're in the Infinite Forest? Pretty big I'd say."

Emma sighed. "We are not in the Infinite Forest."

"How do you know."

"Because that would suck. So you better hope we're not."

"We don't even know if we're heading in the right direction. If we keep walking aimlessly like this how are we supposed to find Mom's castle? We don't even know where it is. We don't even know where we are."

"Your grandpa said to head away from the west."

"Great!" said the smartass kid. "That narrows our search area to the north, the south, and the east."

"Give me a break ok? I have this feeling that we're heading the right way. Have you ever known me to be wrong about directions? Wait - don't answer that. If you're going to bring up that wrong turn at Albuquerque, that was on purpose. It was supposed to be funny."

"You weren't laughing when that cop pulled you over."

"Yeah, don't mention that when we find Regina ok. I don't want her to start thinking I'm a reckless mother. You said she's kinda strict huh. Will you tell me about her?"

_I want to know everything…_ Emma thought, then warned herself against falling for someone she'd never even met. She smiled at what she heard though and everything he said seemed to confirm things she'd forgotten she'd known, as if her heart was saying: "Yes, that's right isn't it. Regina hated surprises." She listened to anecdote after anecdote about Regina's life and personality through the coloured lens of her son's perceptions. Her mind was creating a person based on what she'd heard and filling in the blanks on its own. Emma began to hope that her mental "fantasy" version wasn't too far from the real thing. Like when you had a crush on someone you barely knew and then talked to them for the first time and realised they actually weren't like the picture in your mind.

Picture?

She'd totally forgotten about that! Emma slipped her hand into the back pocket of her jeans (not the one with Anna's nearly-dry underpants) and pulled out the photo she found early yesterday when packing the suitcase. She was shocked to see that there were _three_ people in it now. A third person had appeared as if by magic.

A brunette woman, strikingly beautiful though not smiling much, was next to Emma with her hand laying protectively on Henry's shoulder. She looked kinda familiar...

"Kid!" Emma patted his shoulder and showed him the photo. "Who is this?"

Henry's eyes went wide. "Where did you get that?"

"Your Mom," said Emma. "I think. She brought it when she came to Phoenix."

"But that was only in your memory, Emma! It wasn't real. This photo only existed in Storybrooke. That's my other mom, it's Regina! It was taken at the dinner party the day after she saved you from coming through the portal. I asked Mary Margaret to take the picture because I didn't have any with both of you. Mom was kinda sad that night because you didn't talk to her much."

"I didn't know what to say!" Emma blurted out. Then she frowned and realised what she said. "I mean - I don't know, maybe I didn't notice? Shit, did I really ignore her the day after she saved my life? I probably wanted to talk to her but I was procrastinating about it. Did I usually get along with her?"

"Not really."

"So what you've been telling me is that your mom and I don't get on well, we have different temperaments, we have nothing in common except you… and it's possible that she hates my guts."

"Pretty much."

"So do you think… do I even have a chance with her? Would you mind if I asked her out? Provided she's not uh, already taken I guess."

"Mom doesn't really pay attention to anyone she couldn't care less about. But you, Emma? You make her really, really angry," said Henry, grinning his head off.

Emma reached over and messed up his hair and gave him a shove with her hip.

The smile dropped off her face when she realised that a chattery little toddler hadn't made any noise in a while. She wasn't walking beside them either. Emma knew from experience never to trust a quiet child. When they were quiet it could only mean mischief… or danger.

"Where's Anna?" said Emma anxiously, checking behind them and beyond the trees to the left and to the right.

"Don't panic. She's just up ahead," said Henry. He pointed to the toddler who was sitting on her haunches poking her finger in the dirt.

"Anna? Don't go too far!" Emma called. She picked up a jogging pace. "Come on, we better catch up to her."

Anna took another couple of steps away and immediately began shrieking and stamping her bare feet. "Cold! It's cold. It hurts. My feet cold. Mommy!"

Emma didn't have time to process why the girl would be frightened or have cold feet when she was standing in gravelly dirt under a hot sun. She reached her at a sprint and scooped her up. Then stopped. She couldn't believe her eyes.

"Mom, what happened?" Henry said in awe.

Now that Anna was off the ground she was quiet and curious. "Cold? What that."

It felt like they'd run into a refrigerated room. The temperature had dropped by at least 50 degrees and the air was cool on their sweaty clothes and skin. That wasn't the only change to their surroundings, the forest was now completely obscured by a white blanket. Ice and snow had collected on every bare tree branch and the ground underfoot was covered with it.

"I- I have no idea. Why is there snow?" said Emma, confused. She turned around expecting to see the dry hot scrub they'd just come from but instead all she could see was white in all directions. Even the sky above was cloudy white and dull.

"Snow," Anna announced. "My snow."

Emma gave her a little smile and rubbed the toddler's feet. "Yeah, sweetie. It's your snow. I guess we've left the Summer forest and this is the Winter forest."

Henry gasped. "Mom's castle is called the _Winter_ castle. What if we're really close, Emma?"

"Then we'll see your mom as soon as possible. Can you hold Anna for a sec, please?"

Emma passed her sister to Henry and sat down in the snow to pull off her boots and remove her socks. She slid the socks onto Anna's chubby little legs as if they were thick woollen stockings. Then she put her sweater over Anna's head, it swam on her of course and hung down past her knees. At least she'd be warmer than she would be in just her light sundress. Emma rolled up the sleeves multiple times and the little girl started giggling and flapping her arms.

"What's with the giggles huh," Emma smiled. "Oh I know, it looks better on you than it does on me, is that what you're trying to tell me? You're looking so fashionable, little princess. Are you nice and warm now, wrapped up like a bug in a rug?"

Anna nodded. "My b'ankie. Time for nap? I want pig, p'ease."

Emma stood to put on her boots, then took the baby from Henry and set her on her hip. "Hand me that purple pig thing of Anna's? Thanks, kid. Put my jacket on so we can get moving again. We don't want to stay out in the cold too long."

Henry frowned and looked down at the red leather jacket in his hand. "You should put it on. You're only wearing that sleeveless shirt. You'll freeze."

"Henry," said Emma sharply. "I don't care if it's uncool to wear your mom's clothes. Put it on. Now."

"But Mom-"

"No buts, Henry. Stop arguing. You are this close to losing internet privileges when we get back home."

The boy gave her a knowing look that said he knew exactly what she was up to. He sighed and slid his arms into the leather sleeves. It wasn't so much the specific nature of the threat, but rather it was his mother's serious tone that made him obey. It was obvious that he wasn't happy about it though.

* * *

The snow was deeper now and their boots sank an inch or two with every step. The air was chill but at least there was no snow falling at the moment.

"Mom, are you getting cold yet?" said Henry. "Why don't you wear the jacket for a little while, we can take turns."

"I'm fine." Emma gritted her teeth. She had to avoid talking too much. Her jaw was stiff and she knew her chattering teeth would betray her. Her back muscles ached from tensing against the cold for so long. The only thing keeping her warm was the little bundle cuddled up and sleeping in her arms.

"Are you sure, Mom?" Henry pleaded with her.

"Yes. Don't worry. Everything will be ok."

"Really?" said the boy flatly. "How could anyone say this situation is even approaching 'ok'. We are lost in the freezing cold. We still have no food. We don't know where we're going..."

"Shh," Emma whispered. "Don't wake her. Henry, I'm sorry. I'm doing everything I can think of right now to protect you guys."

Henry glared and said in a low voice. "You're lying. If you were doing everything you could do, you'd have put the jacket on already. What do you think is going to happen to us if you die of hypothermia."

"Nobody is going to die, ok? We're getting out this, I promise."

"You know why this heroic quest sucks?" said Henry, somewhat rhetorically. "I used to like reading adventure stories and fairytales because they were always so exciting and you just knew that everything would be ok in the end. The bad guys got punished and the prince and princess got together and lived happily ever after. That's how stories end. Real life isn't like that. But _this_ sucks because we are in a Fairytale Land but we don't know that's going to happen. There might not be a happy ending in our story. We're probably going to die out here and no-one will even know."

Emma sighed. "Henry. Please."

"I wish Mom were here."

"I know. Me too." Emma smiled. "She'd probably blast the shit out of this place and figure everything out in two seconds huh. Maybe she'll ride past in her warm carriage and pick us up."

"Maybe it'll rain hot chocolate and cinnamon."

"It could happen," she teased. "Hey, your mom told me something important a long time ago, kid. We can't lose hope. Once you've lost that you've lost everything. It's the thing that makes us take each step, and the next one."

"I think I just stepped in deer poop." Henry grinned lopsidedly at her. He was trying to poke fun at her optimism, even though he was clearly less despondent than before.

It was barely another hour before they caught sight of some lights or fires up ahead. As they got closer they saw that it wasn't a settlement but something more transient like a gypsy camp. Henry became excited, assuming that they were saved. Surely they could get food and clothing and directions here.

Emma made sure to tuck the telltale blonde curls into the back of Anna's sweater, just in case anyone recognised the missing princess. Then she handed the sleeping bundle to Henry and listed her instructions.

"Go around the long way and wait for me on the other side. Stay hidden. If Anna wakes up, keep her in your sight at all times. Do not come after me for any reason. I mean it, kid. I'll be back real soon ok."

* * *

Emma walked through the middle of the camp, fully aware that she stuck out as an outsider. There were makeshift shelters and stalls with basic wares. Every person she saw looked wizened and downtrodden and beaten to shit by life. She on the other hand had clear skin unmarred by windwhip or sores, shiny white teeth (a full set), and strange bright clean clothes unsuitable for the weather. There was no way she could pass for one of them.

The stench of disease and poverty pervaded her senses. She glanced left and right, trying to catch a sympathetic eye, but none of them would look at her. They had her pegged as a noble of some sort. She didn't exist to them.

In the middle of the most crowded section there was a rough tent that looked larger and more prosperous than any other. There was a table full of food and goods at the front and a sign announcing that they were "for sell". She opened the flap of the tent to see a man sitting in the chair with his foot on his lap. He was using a knife to pick at the dark grime underneath his fingernails.

Then he licked the knife. Ew.

"Uh, excuse me? Are you selling this food?" she asked.

No answer. The merchant was a large barrel-chested man with coarse dark hair and beard and a face marred by scar lines. He was dirty and wearing rough clothes in the same dirty browns and greys that the others wore. He didn't even look up at her.

Emma tried again. "I'm willing to trade for the food. Please, I have starving children."

"How many," the man grunted.

"Two."

"Then you got three less than most o' the filthy wenches round here. I don't gid them nothing for they kidden either. If they old enough, sent them to the war. Or sell as slaves. I know people. How much you want for them?"

Emma gritted her teeth. "Not interested in selling, I'm here to buy. I just want food."

The man stood up slowly and revealed his full height. He was huge. He took a step towards her and Emma kept her ground. He looked her over, assessing her apparent health and wealth. She glanced behind her and felt another presence, a man. Apparently there would be no escape from this transaction now.

"You wanna trade?" he said, his voice gravelly and deep. "Empty your pockets."

Emma held out her circle necklace from under her shirt instead. "I'll give you this for food. It's real gold jewelry. It's worth way more than everything you have there."

"That so? What I do with gold when there be no-one around who afford buying that? It worth nothing. What else? Pockets now."

But the last order wasn't for her. The man behind Emma shoved her in the back and pulled everything out of the pockets in her jeans. He laid the items on the table: one bobby pin, a hair elastic, Anna's underpants, the photo of her and Regina with their son, a crumpled subway ticket, and a nickel.

The merchant pointed to the little white frilled pants and asked, "These you? Or child."

Emma refused to answer, but it made no difference. He picked them up and it was clear they were tiny and belonged to a young child. What he did next terrified her. He raised the cloth to his face and smelled them.

"One hour with child. Then you gid all food you want."

"She's not for sale, you sick fuck! You're not getting anywhere near her."

The horrible man guffawed and signalled to the one behind her, who gripped Emma's arms tightly to her sides. The merchant turned serious and held the knife in front of her face. In the flash of a second Emma felt her throat being choked in his enormous hand and smelled his rancid breath. He looked her in the eyes.

Emma couldn't gasp but she flinched when he sliced the skin of her upper arm in two strokes making an X shape. The pain seared in her throbbing skin, she knew it was the blood cells racing to attend the site of the injury. Her chest was screaming for air.

"No-one else trade now," he chuckled, releasing her bruised throat. "I keep baby cloth. You, bread and apple. Sell over and paid."

As he disappeared into the back part of the covered tent she saw him rubbing his prize against his crotch. Emma coughed. She felt sick at the thought of anything belonging to Anna being used in that way. The man behind her released her.

Emma grabbed the quarter loaf of bread and the apple from the table. She was shaking with a mixture of adrenaline and anger. She turned to leave the tent but the other man was still there, barring her exit with his body.

"Let me pass. I paid for this," she said, glaring at him.

He shook his head. Her reflexes responded quickly but it wasn't enough. He reached out and stabbed at her middle as she ducked past him. Whatever the weapon was it wasn't sharp enough to be a knife and she cried out.

Emma fell into the open barely catching her feet and she almost lost hold of her haul. The apple tumbled to the ground and several nearby children swarmed upon it.

"That's mine," she yelled at them, and ripped it out of a grubby pair of hands. By this stage she couldn't feel guilty taking food from a starving urchin, this was survival and it was a choice between her children and someone else's. Perhaps she was wrong in that, but as she bolted out of the camp with the food all she could think of was getting to Anna.

* * *

The baby was screaming. She alternated between wailing and calling for Mommy in a hoarse voice. Henry struggled to keep a grip on the wriggling girl and soothe her but nothing was working. She had woken up frightened and hungry.

"Mommeeeee!" She gasped and big fat tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Do you want a story, Anna?" said Henry. "Do you want to see the frog? Emma will be back soon with food."

Quick footsteps nearby announced Emma's return seconds before they saw her. She was out of breath and carrying bread and an apple. There was blood curling around one of her arms in red snake trails and another bloodstain on the side of her shirt. The bruises that would form on her neck from the chokehold weren't visible yet.

"Mom? What happened," said Henry.

"Ran into," Emma panted. "A nail sticking out of a post. Is Anna hurt? What's wrong."

They swapped what they were holding. Emma cradled her little sister, murmuring to her and rocking her from side to side. Anna's whimpers died down into soft sobs.

"Mommeee. I want Mommy. Want Daddy. Time for bye-byes? Go home now, p'ease. I want home."

"Shh, it's ok," soothed Emma. "Do you want something to eat?"

Henry tore a third off the bread and gave it to Emma so that she could hold it near Anna's mouth. The toddler stopped crying and gummed slowly on the bread. She still had wet lashes and red cheeks. A little smile appeared.

"T'ank you," said Anna.

"You are very welcome," Emma whispered back. She sighed at the beautiful little face of her sister and her sweet babycurls, hoping that one day she'd be able to forget the merchant's disgusting offer. Most likely the rage would never fade.

"Butter?"

Emma laughed and so did Henry. "Aw, sorry, sweetie. I couldn't get any butter."

Emma held the bread for Anna and told Henry to eat the rest of the loaf as well as the apple. He protested of course, but she maintained that she wasn't hungry. Henry ate the bread and stared at the apple in his hand until Emma lost her patience and snapped that he shouldn't be picky about fairytale allusions when they were starving. It wasn't that though - the red apple reminded him of Regina.

"You should eat something too," said Henry.

"I told you - I'm not hungry," she said stubbornly.

Henry's voice trembled. "You're going to let yourself get sick for our sake. You didn't sleep at all, you're freezing, you're starving hungry. You think you're strong but you can't hide it from me! I know you're injured and it's not just your arm. Emma, how bad is it?"

"Kinda bad." Emma swallowed hard. "But I'll be ok. It's just a flesh wound and I'll eat at the next place I promise."

Anna made a pout. "Emma sad want Mommy too? It hurts. Kiss it better. All better."

Henry put his arms around them both for a hug. Emma felt like crying too, all she wanted was to get out of this horrible place. How did life end up like this? Her parents had asked one thing of her and she was failing at that. The _only_ thing they'd ever asked of her. She was lost with two kids in the middle of nowhere in some medieval shithole and she was probably going to die of an infection in her wounds. Maybe she should've saved some of the bread and tried to re-invent penicillin.

Henry leaned back and frowned. He looked down at his shirt pocket and reached in to free the wriggling frog.

"He'wo fog," said Anna happily. "Want to p'ay game?"

As soon as the frog hit the snow there was cloud of dusty red smoke and a figure appeared in its place.


	5. Chapter 5

**The visit 5**

**A/N:** Thanks for the reviews :). As a couple people mentioned, Anna Swan was the original name in the pilot script for the character before they changed it to Emma. I thought Snowing would give their second child the name 'Swan' as well to honour their missing firstborn. In this chapter Regina finally makes an appearance. Enjoy the read x.

* * *

_Storybrooke, one year ago_

For Regina, there was only one thing different about _this_ celebratory dinner party at Granny's...

She and the rest of Operation Henry had landed in Storybrooke by pirate ship that afternoon and as they'd disembarked a scene of happy reunions ensued. Friends and family embraced their loved ones and the newcomers were welcomed.

It hadn't escaped Regina's notice that no-one was waiting for her. It could've been attributed to the whole "evil past" thing had not there been someone waiting for even that treacherous imp Gold. Apparently _some_ villains get happy endings. Henry was off somewhere with his other mother, just the two of them, thick as thieves as usual.

Of course Mary Margaret noticed Regina was alone and drew everybody's attention to it. Nice of them all to finally realise that the only reason they were back alive was due to her though.

At the party that night Regina avoided Neal, Hook, and the Charmings (having seen and heard more about them in Neverland than she'd ever wanted to know). Most people ignored her and for some time she sat at the counter with a drink, trying not to look like she was alone. The only person she wanted to come up to her seemed to have forgotten she existed. The one chance she'd had to talk to Emma since returning to Storybrooke was a quick word at the docks.

Yet again Emma Swan had invited her to a party and then ignored her. Regina knew where she was the entire time (sitting with Henry) though she would've denied keeping an eye on the other woman. It irritated her, everyone assumed that Henry was Emma's now and that she'd likely have to ask permission to see him. Or put up with only seeing him when Emma was around as well. As if they were divorced spouses and she was the deadbeat parent who couldn't be trusted.

When faced with protecting their son, Emma had taken her side over Mary Margaret's and had let Regina use dark magic in Neverland. That was the former Evil Queen's role in the gang after all, she was the heat. For Regina performing dark magic yet again would be just another drop in the ocean of her evil deeds, but Emma's heart was still undarkened.

During the magic lessons in Neverland, Emma (and her parents) were no doubt worried that the student would follow in the teacher's footsteps. Regina had taught her to summon strong emotions such as anger in order to use magic. She would never admit it, but Emma was a fair student and her only setback was being afraid of going dark.

_"Regina," Emma whispered seriously, at night in the jungle. "I need you to teach me but is there a way without going dark? I don't want -"_

_"To end up like me?" finished Regina. "You won't. Magic itself is neither dark nor light, it's how you use it that matters. Don't murder anyone and you'll be fine."_

_Emma raised an eyebrow. "So it's a case of 'Do as I say, not as I do"?_

There was a time long ago when she'd expressed essentially the same concern to her own master.

Regina was impressed that in the end Emma was willing to do whatever it took to get Henry back, regardless of moral lines, as that was her attitude as well. She began to wish that that version of Emma was still around but apparently she didn't exist back in the real world.

It was getting late. Emma still hadn't talked to her and though Regina knew it was way past Henry's bedtime she resisted going over to remind Emma of her parental duties. Why did she not come over to her though? Her suitors and parents were annoyingly present so perhaps Emma didn't want to pay attention to her in front of them and was using Henry as a buffer.

Regina was disappointed. She didn't want to examine why too closely though.

If not for Tinkerbelle she might've gone the whole night without saying a single word to anyone. Thereby saving this dinner from being as torturous as the last one. Seeing one friendly face had made all the difference.

Regina turned her head to watch Henry and Emma, not caring at this point if she was obvious about it.

"Sorry, kid," she heard Emma say behind her. "It's time for something you didn't have in Neverland. Bedtime."

_Finally, Emma!_ thought Regina with some exasperation. _It's nearly midnight, you're going to have one grumpy child on your hands tomorrow. _

Regina got up quickly and passed them like she was heading towards Tink. They wouldn't be able to leave without going by her. She was there just at the right moment to see Emma and Henry side-by-side getting ready to leave. _Don't look at her, look at Henry. Ignore her as she deserves._

"Oh, let's say goodnight to Regina," said Emma.

"Goodnight?" Regina faked surprise and glanced at the clock. "I didn't realise it was getting so late..."

Later, on the way home in the car Regina glanced at her son in the passenger seat and smiled. Knowing that Henry still turned to her instead of his favourite playmate gratified her motherly feelings. His wanting to go home with her would've been enough, but getting it at the expense of Emma Swan?

Priceless.

* * *

_Fairytale Land, Winter Castle_

Regina was sitting at her dressing table in her old room in the castle where she'd spent so many years in exile. Everything was spotless now but she had been told that in her absence the castle had fallen into disrepair. After they returned to the land, Snow White had ordered for the castle to be cleaned and maintained while its Queen was sleeping.

She couldn't stop thinking over what had happened since waking from her Sleeping Curse. For the first time she had experienced being under a curse herself and would think twice before inflicting that punishment on another again. She'd spent a long time in that fiery room. Her mind tortured her more than the flames did by the remembrance that Henry had been there too. The thought of her son spending even a minute there was too much to bear. As was the reminder that it had been she who had poisoned him. "Unintentionally" was of no comfort.

Regina chose to be cursed willingly. For Henry. He had been brave enough to return to that nightmare himself, and she could be too. Regina went under the Sleeping Curse in order to magically implant a memory in Henry's birth mother's mind. So that the teenage Emma Swan would feel hopeful and resilient enough to raise him and give him a good life. So that their son wouldn't grow up alone. Regina had done it in the full knowledge that she may never wake up.

_I did it for Henry. I did it for my son and no-one else. Emma's wellbeing means nothing to me, or at least it should not. I cannot care for her that way. If I'd never woken up I would never have had to face these feelings that I do not know how to feel._

Then why couldn't she shake the idea that the wrong person had woken her?

Robin had left the castle after an argument, their first difference of opinion had reared swiftly. He expected her to accompany him into the forest where he lived and worked for the poor with his band of Merry Men. Regina had laughed, assuming he wasn't serious. Did anything about her say 'I'm a camping-in-the-woods sort of girl'? Besides, she had Royal duties to resume and at the moment the realm could use all the protection it could get. Did he really expect her to leave that in order to take up with a band of thieves who routinely robbed people like her? But Robin took it to mean that she derided his life's mission and wasn't prepared to follow him. He would be back at a later time he'd said and then left.

She was needed here, and although many were wary of the former Evil Queen at first, some of the people who had lived in Storybrooke voiced their support and convinced the others that she had changed. It felt gratifying and almost… good. It gave her something to do to take her mind off her pain and the ones she'd lost. Regina didn't want to have to give that up, as she would have to do after marrying Robin. She couldn't be both Queen and Outlaw.

It had been Tinkerbelle who found Robin and brought him to wake the sleeping Queen. Her plan had worked. Robin had assumed that they would be getting married after that and Regina had yet to tell him the truth.

Perhaps Robin didn't know who she really was. All Tinkerbelle had told him was the pixie dust story and that Regina was a Queen. She'd left out the part about being evil and the whole torture-and-murder thing. Most people would consider that something of a dealbreaker. So Regina simply hadn't told him about her magical past or casting the dark curse. He was her chance at being happy and though she had resigned herself to knowing that it could never eventuate, she hadn't wanted to _know_ that she'd irrevocably lost that chance. She didn't want to see the disgust in his face. The rejection would sting.

_If my True Love cannot put aside my past who else could truly love me?_

Tinkerbelle flopped on to the bed and beamed. "So when will we be hearing wedding bells, Your Majesty? This is going to be brilliant for you, Regina, and it's sure to be the start of happy times. Apart from the fact that the entire realm is under attack from a certain someone… Anyway, what the people really need during wartime is an example of hope and what is a wedding if not that?"

"I won't be getting married," said Regina quietly.

Tink sat up shocked. "What? Why. I don't understand. Robin woke you with True Love's Kiss! He has announced the engagement already."

"I cannot marry him."

"Regina!" Tink said frustratedly. "You are doing exactly what you always do. Stop running away from happiness. This is your chance! Well, actually, it's your second or third chance but who's counting. Don't let this one go to waste too."

"Please. I'm aware that this is my last chance. If he's my soulmate then why don't I feel differently? It should feel like falling in love but… I'm feeling _nothing_. You told me he was my perfect match."

"Yes. That's what the pixie dust led to. My spell was not wrong, so don't bother suggesting that again."

"Robin still loves his wife. He says he may never be able to love another woman that much. He wants to marry me and he is glad that his son will have a mother again. How can that be my perfect match?"

"But it is perfect don't you see? You've both lost a love. You can have a family again with this man and his little boy. Give it some time."

"I don't want a replacement son!" Regina snapped. "I want Henry back. I have to believe that I'll see him again one day."

Tink's smile was only sadness. "But you might wait forever for something that never comes..."

"Then so be it. What I do not want," said Regina evenly. "Is to play babysitter to my husband's child again, always in the shadow of his deceased wife and trying to live up to something I can never be. It's already started! All Robin talks of is how wonderful she was: _'Marian used to live in the woods with me, Marian loved the outdoors, Marian would never hurt a fly_'...

"I on the other hand hate the outdoors and I've killed bigger things than flies for nothing more than the hell of it. I cannot stand being constantly compared to a paragon of goodness. You know what my first marriage was like."

"You don't know that marriage to Robin will be anything like that. He may come to love you in time."

"But I don't _want_ that life! I am not going to sacrifice my freedom to marry someone on the possibility that one day things will be better. What kind of premise is that? I don't love him and... I don't think I ever will."

"Regina, I've seen how dark your heart is, but you are capable of giving and receiving love you know."

"That's not why. It's-" Regina cut herself off and averted her eyes from the mirror. She grabbed under her long dark hair and tossed it behind her with frustration. She shifted forward when her hair became caught between her back and the chair. She'd forgotten in Storybrooke how it had always annoyed her in the past, having to keep her hair as long as her mother wanted it to be. Maybe she should cut it.

_'But it's so pretty, darling,' _said Cora's voice in her head._ "How are you to get a husband if you have short hair like a boy? No, you may not have permission to cut it.'_

Regina started picking up and replacing bottles of perfume and powders on her dressing table one at a time to give her hands something to focus on. Other than wringing them together.

Tink got up from the bed and came over to stand by her side. "We used to be friends. I'd like to think we're getting there again. You can tell me. Why do you think you can't love him?"

"How can Robin be my soulmate, Tink?" said Regina. "Years ago, when I was too afraid to take it, I missed my chance. What if that was our only chance to fall in love with each other and we both missed it? What if he _was_ my perfect match then, but isn't now? He ended up falling for Lady Marian. They had a child together and judging by the way he still grieves for her they must've shared a deep lasting love. I… know what that is like. It happened to me too."

Tink bobbed down and peered into Regina's face as though the answer was written there. "Wait a minute, you're already in love?"

"I don't know."

"You must know! You have been in love before as a young girl. Does this feel like that?"

Regina winced and nodded. "Yes. It feels the same, although sometimes it's different. It aches."

"Who is it," said Tink excitedly. "Is it someone I know? Does he love you back? You must tell me, I can help you get together. I'm an excellent Wing Ma'am. Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

"I have love for someone I shouldn't."

A knock at the door alerted Regina, rescuing her from having to confess the identity in her heart. She's said far too much already. The Queen stood and called the servant in, all the while ignoring the filthy side-eye Tink was giving her for getting out of answering.

"Your presence has been requested downstairs, Your Majesty," the servant said.

As Regina went to leave she paused at the door to give him a steely glare. "Disturb me again in my private chambers and I'll cut your… " she gritted her teeth "wages."

She'd nearly pulled out one of her old threats and was about to say "throat" or "hamstrings" or "tongue". The servant apologised but there was no fear in him. It was so much harder to motivate them when mortal injury was off the table. Every time Regina was tempted she thought of Henry and the possibility that she'd see him again. If that happened she did not want him to find her having turned back to her old ways.

Her fingers were itching with magic and it was driving her crazy. Only her stubborn determination kept her in control.

* * *

Tinkerbelle checked inside Regina's chambers again wondering if her friend had returned from performing her queenly duties yet. There was much for Regina to do and she had been in consult for some time. The Winter Forest had been particularly hard-hit in the wake of the curse and many of the peasants were starving and homeless. As the Evil Queen Regina had not completely ignored their plight: she employed them at the castle, stocked her army of guards with them, and in so doing she created a prosperous economy by accident.

The ordinary man was concerned more with his breadbasket than the petty squabbles between a Princess and a Queen.

With time the region would return to its former state under the Queen's exacting eye and rule. That is, if they were ever to stop being attacked by an evil presence from another realm. Nobody even knew the agenda, except that whoever-it-was was looking for something. Or someone perhaps. So the rumours grew.

Tink was waiting impatiently. She was dying to know who Regina was in love with! She was sure the reticent woman had been about to tell her, possibly to her own regret. Tink wanted so much to help her. After the disastrous end to their first attempt at friendship she felt that they both were keen to make a fresh start. The fairy knew she had to be careful though. Regina may have changed but her fears had not. Pushing her to confess would not go well.

_But it is the only way I can help her! I have to know who it is that has won her heart._ _There must be a way to find it out. Why is she hiding it?_

Her friend had suffered much in life. She had been wronged in many ways, but she was self-destructive enough to make things worse for herself. Upon the precipice of happiness she baulked in fear every time like a skittish foal. Regina had admitted herself that she'd nearly lost her son because she'd given in to revenge yet again. It was almost as if she didn't know how strong love could be.

Tink had heard from Regina one time, when they were young and sat up all night talking, that her mother had always been somewhat critical of her. As she listened to a few anecdotes the fairy had gotten the picture and then decided that 'somewhat' was an understatement. Cora Mills had done a number on her daughter's head that was for sure.

The Queen's first marriage had slammed the door shut on her freedom and caused her to panic. Not the dizzying rush of a panic attack but a slow anxious climb that built itself up into a seething fury. One that kept itself quiet until the day it lashed out to destroy those who had wronged her.

Tink rolled over on the bed with a sigh. She thought she noticed a figure on the balcony through the filmy curtains but it was hard to tell. Then she heard a wet sniff like someone was crying and trying to keep quiet about it. Someone with a lot of practice at it.

Tink was off the bed like a shot and ran on tiptoes to the balcony. She batted the curtains aside and saw Regina standing at the railing with her hands curled around the edge.

"What are you doing," Tink asked warily.

Regina jumped visibly but she wiped her eyes before turning around. Her schooled expression and wet lashes didn't fool her concerned friend.

"Nothing."

"Forgive me for saying this, but you can't be trusted around balconies. I'm here as your friend, give me your hand and come away from the railing."

Regina rolled her eyes in irritation at the assumption, but she did take a few steps forward and then crossed her arms. "I wasn't doing anything."

"Except crying and staring at the depths below?"

"I wasn't going to do anything," Regina repeated with emphasis. "Then or now. If I wanted to end my miserable unhappiness I would have acted upon it some time ago. As you know."

Tink reached for one of Regina's hands and though the other woman resisted she managed to pull one free and gave it a comforting squeeze. The fairy realised that Regina really was unhappy about the idea of her impending marriage, it should have been a new chance for her. A clean slate. But perhaps that wasn't possible and she knew it.

For the second time Regina was facing a walk down the aisle toward one while holding love in her heart for another.

"I'm sorry I upset you earlier," said Tink. "Saying all of that about Robin. When will you tell him that you don't intend to marry?"

"I'm trying to avoid that confrontation."

"You can't put it off forever. Are you waiting to see if this other guy will have you first? Playing it safe?"

Regina shook her hand away with a derisive frown and headed back inside. She batted the filmy curtains aside and went to sit on her bed. Tink followed and sat beside her. But Regina only stared at her hands in her lap.

"That is exactly why this is hard" said Regina. "I'm giving up Robin when there is absolutely no expectation of my being able to be with … someone else who almost certainly won't have me."

"Are you sure this other guy doesn't love you back?" Tink was confused. "Can't you ask him? You didn't fall for a married man did you? Or that David fella? Because if that's the case you've got a fight on your hands with Mary Margaret. Er, another fight."

"No, not him," said Regina crossly. "Are you trying to goad me into telling you against my will?"

"You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to. But I wish you would. You look terribly distressed."

"I think I want to tell you, but I'm afraid of your reaction."

A tear fell down Regina's cheek and she swiped it away impatiently. "The things my mother would say if she knew the truth…"

"You're not an eighteen-year-old girl anymore. Your mother is gone! She can no longer stop you from doing anything. If you don't want to get married at all, then don't. It's your life. It's time you learnt to live it for yourself. Be free."

"But her voice is still in my head. It never goes away."

Tink grabbed both Regina's hands and pleaded with her. "Then ignore it and listen to your own instead. Or listen to me, since I'm clearly the brains of this operation."

Regina paused and didn't talk for a long time, but she didn't get up to leave and she didn't order her to get out either. So Tink sat there quietly (with only the appearance of patience) and waited for her friend to gather her thoughts and possibly her courage. Regina was probably still hedging whether to expose her secret, whatever it was, and it made Tink wonder why.

"It's - it's Emma Swan."

Tink gaped, completely taken aback. "_Oh_... I didn't… That's wholly unexpected … _Emma?_... "

Regina didn't elaborate, apparently waiting for her to recover from the shock. But she must've been uneasy waiting for it. She obviously hadn't confessed it to a single soul before. It was a surprise to Tink though, she hadn't expected to hear a woman's name and certainly not that particular one.

When Regina tried to pull her hands away Tink wouldn't allow it. A smile spread over the fairy's face. "I think that's wonderful. You're in love with your son's mother! She's the one. Now I see."

"Now you see what?"

"Never mind," sang Tink happily. "It's all beginning to make perfect sense to me now."

"It is hardly perfect between us. We've fought from the first moment we met."

"Since when has that ever stopped two people from falling in love? In fact, it's practically a cliche."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Have I ever told you how truly irritating Emma Swan is? First she came to my town and turned it into complete disarray. She attacked my apple tree with a chainsaw for no apparent reason and took any opportunity thereafter to make my life difficult. Every time I turned by back she was there, undermining me in front of my son.

"After the curse broke she threatened to take Henry away, not that she needed to by that point he was so scared of me that I thought I'd lost him forever. She accused me of a murder I didn't commit, something which she still hasn't apologised for. This is the woman with whom I entrusted my son! She's probably feeding him Poptarts for breakfast.

"She has terrible posture, you should see the way she sits and slouches, and she wears the most ridiculous things on her head when it's cold. She is obsessed with trying to beat me and she can never let anything go. When we argue she gives me that smug knowing look that makes me want to set her on fire."

Tink raised an eyebrow at the conclusion of the rant. "This is someone you love, right? Sounds like she gets under your skin… and you like it."

"I do not like it," Regina denied it with a stubborn huff. "You think I wanted to feel anything but hatred for the daughter of my worst enemy? The one who was sent to destroy the life I created and for which I sacrificed dearly? If not for her I would still have my son. I ought to hate her for that alone."

"And yet you don't. You love her."

"I never used those words exactly."

Tink wasn't fooled by the technicality. "Does thinking of her run shivers over your skin? Do you look forward to seeing her and when you do you can feel your heart leap? You miss her while she's gone? The heart isn't always sensible, sometimes it gives itself away without our permission."

"How do you know what that's like, fairy," asked Regina suspiciously.

"Hey, that's a whole 'nother story. We're dealing with your disastrous lovelife today, not mine. Stop trying to change the subject. Why do you think you can't be with her?"

Regina laughed silently and glanced at the ceiling. "Where do I start? For one, her parents would never allow it and she doesn't go against them easily. It'd be incredibly complicated because we have our child to consider. Then there's the issue of her being stuck in another realm with no memory of anything that's happened between us."

"Spill!" said Tink, eager to hear some gossip from the woman who normally had none. "What's happened between you? I want details! Well, some details. Not too many."

"Nothing like that. We've never kissed. She told me something while we were in Neverland, she implied that she prefers women. She said she's attracted to me and expressed interest in getting together. I think it was merely a lapse in judgement for us both. Maybe she was joking."

"Are you sure? That seems a cruel joke."

"Perhaps she meant it at the time, but as soon as we got back to Storybrooke it was like we became ourselves again and the moment was lost. That's all over now. I've a hopeless cause unless Emma returns to this realm and somehow gets her memory back. Hook has been charged with bringing her back when it's time, but the plan might not succeed. I may see her again, but she won't remember me. Or anyone else, except Neal."

"I don't mean to bring up another problem when you're doing quite well identifying them all on your own… but Emma has several male suitors including Baelfire does she not?"

"It wouldn't matter if she had none, she still would not choose me. Emma won't choose me over them."

"But how do you know?"

"She's attracted to Hook. She still loves Neal, they created a child together. Emma may say she does not prefer to be with men these days, but those two won't take no for an answer and eventually one of them will win her over by persistence and with her parents' blessing."

"Sounds like you're focusing a lot on what could go wrong. Have you ever considered what could go right? She might fall for you this time."

"It doesn't matter," Regina said dismissively as if that were the final word. "The Emma I know is never coming back. At least, not to me."

Tink resisted continuing the argument since it would likely do no good in changing Regina's mind. Some of the points were valid, but nothing could be done about any of them until Emma's return. It saddened her that her friend's latest choice in love seemed to have such difficulty attached to it, enough to make Regina adamant that she would never get the happiness she craved.

_Maybe I'll have to resort to some matchmaking, _Tink thought to herself, hiding a sneaky smile.

"You are too prone to being mopey, Regina," she said. "Let's do something fun. Preferably something your mother would've hated."

"That hardly narrows down the possibilities. She disapproved of everything I did."

Regina was uninterested at first but then an idea lit up her face, an expression usually reserved for when she was forming a new plan for harassing a certain princess and her prince.

"Tink? How are you with scissors?"

* * *

Later that evening an event happened that Regina felt she had been awaiting her whole life and until that exact moment she had always expected to feel elated. The fight of her life was over. If winning was determined by being the last one standing, then this was the end and she had won.

Over the years many people (both friend and foe) had said to her that revenge would not make her happy. As it turned out they were right. Whatever she was feeling right now it was not happiness. How strange that she should mourn the fall of her enemy.

The Queen was at table for the evening meal in the dining hall when the message arrived. A little blue bird flew in the window and dropped a note in her lap. After reading the short missive she was no longer able to eat another bite. The bird was still sitting on her shoulder and she was too engrossed to swat it away.

Tink expressed her curiosity over the note in her hand. "What is that, Regina. News?"

"It's from one of Snow's infernal bird messengers," said Regina, staring at the parchment. "I found out that the Charmings had already sent for Emma when I woke up this morning. They write now to say that it worked… I think this may mean that Emma and Henry have returned."

She passed the note over to Tink to read. All it said in a quick slash of ink was:

_The plan worked_

_But we're under attack_

_She is coming for you_

"Who is coming," said Tink. "Is it her?"

"Know anyone else who is currently terrorising the realm?" Regina said sardonically. "Let her come. We will soon see who has the more powerful magic. This place has known greater horrors than she can aspire to. But I doubt what she is looking for is actually here. She'd be better off visiting the lakes district to take recreation, for this will surely be a wasted trip otherwise. I hear the waters are beautiful."

"You know what she is seeking then?"

The corner of Regina's lip curled. "I know what she_ thinks _she is seeking. There's a difference."

Tink frowned. "What does the part about the 'attack' mean?"

"The Summer Palace has been attacked by flying monkeys in the past. This is probably another scare tactic. Snow loves to be dramatic. I'm sure she meant that the kingdom is generally under attack."

"You don't seem certain," Tink observed.

The Queen rose gracefully from the table and went over to the nearest mirror on the wall. The dining hall was lined with a multitude of reflective glasses, each of different size and shape and frame style. The overall effect was brilliant yet unnerving.

Regina's own reflection greeted her and she had to stop herself from running her hands through her newly shortened dark locks which fell below her chin. After a few seconds, the mirror clouded with smokey blue and the Genie's face appeared.

"How very modern of you, Your Majesty," said Sidney's voice. He was referring to her haircut, which would either cause a stir or an outrage among the fashion-savvy population of the kingdom. Dressed in her usual Queenly finery and sporting short hair would be an unusual juxtaposition here.

"Show me The Witch," ordered Regina.

"You know I cannot do that," said Sidney's voice. "Repeated asking will not get you anywhere."

Regina huffed with impatience. "Then show me the Summer Palace!"

The Genie's face faded and the clouds cleared to reveal a long shot of the Summer Palace, showing the old destruction of the footbridge and gate… and also its new injuries. The face of the battlements bore the pockmarks of several blasts. Soldiers were barely recognisable in their positions along the outer wall, at this distance they appeared to be tiny ants.

Had Hook really succeeded in bringing Emma and Henry back to Fairytale Land only for them to run into danger soon after? Could she handle seeing it if they had?

"I need to see..." Regina hesitated. "My son and his mother."

The castle picture remained, which could mean that they weren't here at all. Or that they were in a place where there was no light for the mirror to reflect.

_Please let them have escaped._ _Emma, surely you would have protected our son at all costs?_

Regina and Tink peered at the sky in the background. Dark flying shapes were visible in the sunset, circling like vultures. The next blast was a direct hit to the already weakened structure and suddenly the entire facade of the castle collapsed in a plume of dust.

Tink gasped. "No!"

"This is no scare tactic!" said Regina, alarmed. "Does she even know what she is doing? Sending out those deranged half-breed creatures is insanity, they cannot be counted on to follow orders. They've destroyed half the castle."

"What about Emma and Henry," said Tink. "Or Snow and Charming. Do you think they got out in time?"

"Those two idiots would have stayed and tried to fight, but I doubt they would have let their children and grandchild stay. It is likely they didn't survive if they were in the battlements when it collapsed. Snow always was stubborn to the point of recklessness, this time it may have gotten her killed. I always thought it would feel different somehow."

Regina said the last part to herself. Her arch nemeses were finally dead after all these years and it was an anti-climax to her bloody vendetta against them. They were her enemies, but they were also Emma's parents and Henry's grandparents. If for no other reason, she regretted that the people she cared about would be devastated by what had happened to their loved ones.

_If I won why does it feel like I lost? _

_It would be just like Snow to go and die of her own accord as soon as I stop actively trying to kill her!_

Regina called to the servant waiting upon her table and asked for the Commander of her Elite Guards to join her presence. The man she sent for appeared in under three minutes, which was impressive given how far away the barracks were. He wore pitch black leather armour gilded with silver branches across his broad chest with insignia declaring his loyalty to Winter. No weapons were visible, but one glance at his serious demeanor announced that he was deadly.

"Commander," Regina nodded to acknowledge him. "The Summer Palace is one of our family establishments with which we have strong personal connections. The castle has suffered a serious blow from a known threat to the realm. Which of the Elites is available?"

"Both divisions are ready, Your Majesty," the gruff military man said. "For your protection and service as always."

"Organise a rescue effort. Send the First Elites along with Rescue and Medical to the Summer Palace. Give aid to any other survivors, but your priority is to confirm immediately whether Snow White and all her family members are among the dead. Find them."

"Consider it done, Your Majesty."

"Oh, and Commander?" Regina paused. "If the princess is all alone and the Witch finds her first... I will crush your still-beating heart in my hand. Bring her to me at once."

He bowed and strode out, leaving Regina and Tink alone with the disturbing real-time image of destruction on the wall.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Visit 6**

_Storybrooke, a memory from the first year_

"Emma, why are we going inside," complained ten-year-old Henry. "I want to go play the games and get candy."

"In a minute," said Emma, as they went upstairs heading for the Town Hall offices. "You need to ask your Mom's permission first. Otherwise it won't be just you who gets in trouble when she finds out."

Henry sighed. "_You're_ my Mom. If you say it's ok then it's ok."

"Uh huh. Somehow I doubt Regina will see it that way."

Emma smiled to herself. Secretly she was enjoying not only stealing the title but also the screwing-over she was about to give. If Regina said no then she'd make herself out to be the bad guy, and if Regina said yes then Emma would get to spend time with Henry. As far as she was concerned it was a win-win situation. Annoying Regina had become her new favourite pastime. Usually there wasn't much to do in Storybrooke so Emma liked to think of it as the Mayor's own fault. But today there was actually something interesting to do.

It was time for yet another one of Storybrooke's many festivals, the Medieval Fayre, which had been set up on the expansive lawns in front of the Town Hall building. It consisted of the same stalls and vendors as there had been on Miner's Day but the decorations were different and many of the townspeople were in costume fitting the theme.

Of course Henry wanted to go. Emma thought it might be lame but seeing his eyes light up changed her mind completely. Kids had a different definition of what was lame. She loved spending time with her little buddy and unless she got salmonella from a corndog it'd be worthwhile going along with it.

Henry traced a familiar beeline through the halls once they were on the second floor of the Town Hall building. They knocked on the door and went in to the Mayor's office. Regina was seated at her meeting table with files spread out in front of her. She was concentrating on the paperwork until she heard the knock and raised her eyes in surprise.

"Henry." Regina sounded glad to see him. "I wasn't expecting you."

"I want to go to the Medieval Fayre," Henry announced. "But Emma said I had to come ask you, even though she already said yes."

"Did she indeed."

"Yup."

Regina took her purse and fished out several small bills. She handed them to Henry so that he could buy snacks or enter the games and sideshows. He was about to turn and leave when she grabbed his wrist to get his attention.

"Henry, you may go to the Fayre. But you are not to leave the grounds understand? No wandering off. I want to see you back here in my office no later than 8pm. Don't eat so much candy that you get sick and do not take anything from Miss Ginger. Remember what happened last time."

"Yes, Mom," he droned.

"Off you go then."

Henry ran to the door and looked back when Emma didn't follow. "Come on, Emma. It's already started, the good stuff will be gone. Let's go!"

"I'll catch up with you in a sec, ok kid?" said Emma. "I'll meet you in the courtyard near the fortune teller."

"Which one. Fake warts or real warts?"

"Fake."

After Henry ran off Emma noticed that Regina had already resumed her work and was signing a stack of papers with yellow "sign here" stickers attached to them. She watched her for a few minutes, waiting to see what she'd do. The Mayor's voice was wry when she spoke.

"Your transparent effort to get me alone may have fooled my son, Sheriff, but not me. What do you want."

Emma shrugged nonchalantly. "Just wanted to say sorry for interrupting you when you're working. Alone. In your office on a Saturday afternoon. Also I'm wondering why you didn't scold Henry for not saying please and thankyou. That's a fairly standard Mom thing. Or so I've heard."

"If you are trying to make a point just state it. Avalanches are more subtle than your implications."

"Why are you hiding up here?"

"Hiding? I am doing nothing of the kind. If I were it'd certainly be none of your concern. I'm working."

"Everyone else in town is out there having fun but you're up here by yourself. You could be down there schmoozing with your voters at the very least, Madam Mayor, that would count as work. You left as soon as you officially declared the Fayre opened. Everyone's having a great time except you."

"Like you said, I'm the Mayor. Having responsibilities is by definition the antithesis of fun. I have many things to do."

"Are any of them more important than spending time with your son?"

That got her to look up. Regina whirled on her with a flash of ire. "How dare you imply that I'm neglecting him! You accuse me of not disciplining his manners when you have none yourself. He's going through a phase, ever since you showed up in fact. If you were any kind of parent you'd know that sometimes it involves patience and ignoring bad behaviour, but that doesn't mean that I'm ignoring _him_."

"That's not what I said," Emma pointed out. "He's fine. Are you?"

"I would be better without having to put up with this conversation."

"I bet Henry would like it if you came with us..."

Regina sighed and it almost sounded pained. "No, he wouldn't. Just go, Sheriff Swan. Get out of my office and keep an eye on my son. He's a ten-year-old child with a habit of running off. Try to remember that you're an adult for once."

There it was. That flash right there. That was the real her, Regina the mother, peeking through. On a Summer's day she could be the coldest bitch you'd ever encounter and her sass was so pointed it stabbed like a shard of ice. Only sometimes she betrayed her burden. She was aggressively manipulative, going after what she wanted with a single-mindedness that bordered on irrational. She was angry and defensive when it came to Henry, but sometimes Emma saw what lay beneath. The neverending worry over her child. Classic symptom of motherhood.

Emma had stayed in Storybrooke for Henry, convinced that his adoptive mother didn't quite love him the way she wanted her to. But every clash with her was a thrill, and the angrier and more defensive Regina became only convinced Emma of one thing.

Regina did love him but she was crap at showing it. She might even be hurt by all this.

"What are you working on anyway?" Emma peered at her curiously. She was still standing around in the Mayor's peripheral vision with her hip cocked and her thumbs in her belt loops. Regina ignored her and continued to shuffle papers.

"Regina, how can this little town possibly produce so much stuff for you to do that you have to work on the weekends? I'm sure whatever it is can wait. Why don't you come down to the Fayre with Henry and me? We'll walk around for a bit and check it out. Play some games, eat some crap, buy some junk."

"No. I hate the Fayre." Regina sounded almost petulant.

Emma snorted and her eyebrows shot up. "You _hate_ the Fayre? What are you, five? Have you got something in your craw about the existence of the Middle Ages or you just like the Renaissance Fair better?"

"Clearly you know nothing about history. What is there in the Middle Ages to be glorified and enjoyed? Those were times of pestilence and disease and stenches to make your stomach revolt. The people were nothing but unwashed morons dictated to by charlatans and quacks and pompous nobles."

"Oh, this is hilarious. You really hate it don't you? There's a story behind this, I can tell."

Regina was fired up now, she got up on her metaphorical soapbox and started ranting about every bad aspect of Medieval life and how inferior it was in every way to the state of conditions in modern-day America and that the residents of Storybrooke ought to be more grateful. Freedom, democracy, opportunities for women, health, education, torture devices, and child mortality… nothing escaped her scathing diatribe. She was like a one-woman spokesperson for the future and sounded much more passionate than she normally was about politics.

Emma listened to it all, half interested and half amused. When Regina finally ran out of points to make she was a little out of breath and suddenly self-conscious as she tucked her hair back behind her ear.

"Come on," said Emma. "You can keep boring me to death with politics while we're walking around outside. I'll buy you a turkey leg?""

She intended for her smirk to be wry but it came out flirty instead. She let her fingers brush over the back of Regina's blazer and headed out. The touch was over and done before Regina could object in any way.

Regina glared at the retreating form, lacking the usual spite. "With an incentive like that how could I refuse."

* * *

_Winter forest_

The cloud of red smoke dissipated to reveal a tall thin figure in black fur-trimmed robes complete with a black pointed hat. She was unexpectedly pretty-featured with blue eyes and light curls escaping an elegant up-do hidden under her hat. But none of those physicalities were what was most obviously noticeable about her.

Her skin was coloured bright green like the frog she had formerly been disguised as.

"Where fog go," said Anna, wide-eyed. "Who that."

Emma held Anna closer to her chest and put her other hand on Henry' shoulder. She didn't know what was about to happen but she was on guard nonetheless. Not that it would matter if they were attacked, she had no weapons to fight with and no means to escape a magical foe. If the Oz movie was anything to go by, Emma knew exactly who this person was.

"Are you-" started Henry. "You're the Wicked Witch of the West."

"That is what they call me." The skin around the Witch's eyes wrinkled but her smile hinted at malice rather than mirth. Her voice was soft, breathy, and as pretty as she was.

"They say I am even worse than my sister. She truly was an evil witch. It runs in my family."

"What do you want with us," said Emma warily. "Why have you followed us?"

"Perhaps you are unfamiliar with how these things go. Generally if you are running away from someone it is not advisable to allow them to spy on you. You ought to be suspicious of animals that appear to follow you. You may end up being betrayed."

"See, kid," Emma hissed at her son. "I told you not to bring the stupid frog!"

"Hey!" said Henry indignantly. "Anna was the one who threw a hissy fit over it."

The sound of something crunching through the snow alerted their attention. Emma and Henry were horrified to see what looked something like a snow monkey dragging the bloody carcass of a deer behind it. The dead animal's throat was cut as though it had been purposely bled and it did not appear to have been feasted upon. For instance, its belly had not been ripped open in the manner that lions do to eat. The deer's eyes were wide open as if frozen in fear.

The snow was streaked in a red path from deep in the forest.

"Cheeky wittle monkey. What he got?" said Anna, before Emma could shield her eyes from the gory sight.

The Witch barely reacted when the monkey came to a stop at her side with its kill. It was heaving and drooling as if it was both in pain and feeling savage. There was a pair of wings stitched onto its back to unnatural effect. It looked nothing like the lame puppets that were the flying monkeys in the movie.

"What is wrong with that thing?" Emma recoiled in disgust.

"It is not wrong merely because you do not understand," said the Witch.

Henry was also unconvinced. "It moves like it's injured or something. Its wings don't look right. Why does it have the dead deer? Monkeys eat plants and fruit and stuff, not animals."

"Killing serves many motives."

"Yeah," said Emma. "Motives like hunger and territory and mating rights. Not… sport. Animals don't kill because they are bored or malevolent or because they get pleasure from it. Those are motives for the worst of human actions."

"All lifeforms are connected. Why cannot animals rise to the skies as birds do or learn the sentience of humans? I can give orders, whether or not they are followed is not up to me. I cannot control them. I do not seek to."

The monkey began to call loudly in shrieks and used its hands to gather snow from the ground into a ball. Once the snowball was formed, he threw it in a random direction and repeated the process several times over. The Witch took several slow cautious steps out of range.

Henry noticed it and assumed she was wary because of the water thing. "Why are you alive?"

"Why is anyone?"

"But how come you don't look like yourself?"

"If you think witches are supposed to be old and ugly you have not known many witches. Evil has a certain seductive glamour to it. My sister's beauty stole the hearts of many."

Henry shrugged with the nonchalant confidence of early adolescence. "My mom is a witch too and she's not old and ugly. My other mom I mean. Not this one who's probably going to get frostbite because she's too stubborn for her own good."

"I have not heard of such a thing before. Who is this other mother, the witch? We might know one another."

"Don't!-" Emma interjected. "Don't tell her, kid."

"You disappoint me," said The Witch. It sounded like a warning.

"How's that. You don't even know who we are."

Henry joined in. "If you do anything to us you'll really regret it. My mom is the most powerful sorceress in all the realm and she'd do anything to protect us."

The Witch's blue eyes glinted like cold steel and she tipped her chin. "Then you must be none other than her family, her loved ones. In other words, you are her _weakness_. Your mother is the Princess Regina."

* * *

_Winter castle_

"Did you get _any_ sleep at all last night?" said Tink, shocked at her friend's appearance. "You look terrible."

Regina frowned. "Thankyou so much, ex-friend. Don't you think I have done enough sleeping recently, Tink?"

"Oh yeah. That."

"Yes, _that._"

"Are the nightmares very bad?"

"No, I rather enjoy feeling like I'm being burned alive," said Regina sarcastically. "Besides, do you think that I could sleep right now? My son and his mother are god-knows-where in a strange land with dangers they're unfamiliar with. Snow and Charming have likely perished in a skirmish they could never have won, their child is now missing… and I? I am sitting here unable to do anything about any of it!"

During her speech Regina got up to pace. The long dark cape that fell from her shoulders brushed the ground and followed her steps.

"What is she doing here," the Queen muttered to herself. "This is my realm. She doesn't belong here any more. She has her own damn realm to terrorise. If anyone is going to terrorise this realm it will be _me_."

"You know her?" said Tink.

"Not at all."

"So how do you know so much about her?"

"We have met."

Before Tink could cross-examine Regina on her annoyingly cryptic answers, a small ball of familiar blue light began to glow at shoulder level. She turned and was unsurprised by the source but curious as to why the fairy was here. Regina was not happy with the arrival of this particular unannounced guest.

"What are you doing here?" snapped Regina. "Leave or I will get the insect repellent."

"I take no pleasure in being here," said the Blue Fairy, her wings were beating as she hovered. "I come from the Summer place to bring a warning. Do not interfere or involve yourself further."

"I had nothing to do with the attack!" Regina said, angry at the accusation. "I sent aid, which was sorely needed by the looks of it. There must have been casualties. Tell me: are Snow and Charming among the dead?"

"Naturally your enemies' deaths would be the first thing you are interested in, Your Majesty. I am not at liberty to say."

"What about their baby? Where is she? If her parents are gone, you must bring the princess to me so that I can protect her. I am her nearest relative after all."

"That is no longer true."

"Emma?" Regina's heart leapt with hope as she shrewdly deduced the fairy's meaning. "She and Henry made it through the portal. They're here. Were they in the palace at the time of the attack? Is Anna with them?"

"They arrived safely, it is not known whether they escaped safely."

"Where are they now?"

"It's not just you who is trying to scry for Emma and Henry's location. They have many enemies here. I have prevented all from finding them or any blood relation of theirs through magical means to protect against prying eyes."

"Well, that was moronic. Now _I_ can't locate them either!"

"They are safe from her at least."

"You don't know that," Regina argued. "Her powers are… strange. Unnatural."

"And how is that different from your own dark magic?" said the Blue Fairy.

"I am not like _her_!"

Regina resumed her pacing, as though the movement was the only thing stopping her from attacking the infuriatingly unhelpful fairy or sending a gust of wind her way. Seeing that Regina was becoming frustrated with the lack of answers she was getting, Tink stepped in to see if she could mollify things a bit before they escalated.

"Blue," Tink interrupted hastily. "Henry is Regina's son. If you know something you owe her that information."

"Unfortunately it is not known where they are at this time. All I know is that they were seen running away from the battlements towards the family rooms. No-one has seen them since."

The Blue Fairy turned to Regina. "Now, tell me what it is that you know. What does she want in our realm?"

Regina paused for a second before deciding to answer. "I don't know for certain. I can only assume that she is looking for the Lost Princess, but that is beside the point."

"How so?"

"Because the Lost Princess is exactly that: lost. She is not here, she is not anywhere. The Witch will search the realm and examine all of the princesses she can find, yet what she is seeking cannot be found."

"And will you help her? When she comes to you to reclaim an old alliance?"

"I shall not. I owe her nothing."

"That is not what I've heard," the Blue Fairy said with triumph. "I heard that you owe her a great deal. A debt of life."

"There is nothing to worry about," Regina said dismissively. "I have nothing against reneging on that deal. If I were moral I might be compelled to fulfill such a contract… but I'm not. "

* * *

"Princess?" Emma echoed.

Regina was a princess?

She looked at Henry to confirm but he was still staring down the Witch. Clearly the jig was up and she knew who they were after all. Perhaps that was the reason she was pursuing them in the first place. It wasn't Anna the invaders were after at the castle, it was Regina. The three of them had escaped and were leading their enemies right to her.

"My Mom isn't a princess anymore," said Henry. "She is Queen Regina, also known as _The Evil Queen_. You may have heard of her."

The Witch seemed amused by his bravado. "I knew her before you ever did. Yes, I have heard the story of her little tiff with Snow White. It's quaint."

"Then you know what she is capable of."

"Oh," the Witch sighed. "Yes. In fact, it is why I am here."

"She's more powerful than you are."

"You have no way of knowing that."

"Yes, I do," insisted Henry.

Emma wasn't sure if he was being maddening on purpose to annoy the Witch, but it was hardly a wise plan. Where did he get that taunting smartassery from?

"Kid-" she warned.

"I know she's better at magic than you are."

"No, you do _not_!" The Witch retorted. The last word she almost screamed.

All at once the winged monkey began to shriek, happily contributing to the argument. Anna began to wiggle in Emma's arms and begged to be put down.

"Down! Down!" Anna demanded. "I WANT DOWN NOW."

"Shh, Anna-" said Emma, trying to restrain her sister from taking a skydive.

Anna wailed and burst into tears apparently distraught that she was trapped in an adult's arms several feet off the ground. Emma was out of practice at dealing with a toddler's random outbursts even though she had at one time quelled tantrums in shopping centres and zoos and other public places. The volume only increased.

"Stop that hideous crying!" The Witch covered her ears and bent over at the waist. Her face became contorted with rage and she breathed hard as though the crying was causing her physical pain. She lashed out an arm and muttered under her breath.

Emma felt frozen for a second and then her body moved even though she definitely had not told it to. Panic stabbed her at the thought of losing control over herself, of being powerless. She leaned down and lowered the girl in her arms to the snowy ground as if she were a puppet and someone else pulled the strings.

Anna squeaked when her feet hit the icy cold. She was quickly scooped away by Henry.

The Witch righted herself and recovered. But her cold blue eyes were fixed on Emma lying prostrate in the snow at her feet, staring up at her with defiance though being unable to order her own body to move.

Emma wanted to wrench herself away. She wanted to turn her head to yell at Henry to take Anna and run. But she could do nothing. The children were outside her peripheral vision.

She gritted her teeth and asked. "What do you want with Regina."

"That remains to be seen," the Witch said, now calm.

"You're not getting her."

The Witch moved her head around like she was trying to examine her prey from all angles. She reached out and tore the fabric of Emma's tank top exposing the smooth creamy plane of her back. Emma shivered as a hand moved lightly over her skin, raising goosebumps as it trailed down and up over her shoulder blades.

"Yes," breathed the Witch. "And I will have you too."

"No, mine!" said Anna in that stubborn way that toddlers have of declaring their possessions. "My sistuh. Go 'way."

"Mom?" said Henry from somewhere behind her. "What's wrong? Why can't you move?"

Emma swallowed the bile rising in her throat. The wound in her side was throbbing in pain and it felt like there was an enormous weight on her back preventing her from moving.

"H-Henry, run. Take Anna."

"Oh, do," the Witch mocked her in a high-pitched voice. "Henry, run. Take Anna. Take Anna."

Emma tried to push herself up off the ground but the weight upon her sank again. Her arms trembled and gave up the fight. The ice bit into the skin of her cheek and arms as she lay on the ground.

"Go, Henry," she said weakly. "Now."

"But- ... ok, I'll get Mom! We'll be back for you."

The Witch tipped Emma's head up and held her in the grip of her stare. Even when Henry ran off with the baby and the rapid snow-crunches of his footsteps died away she didn't stop them. She stared and stared into the depths of Emma's eyes as though reading the script of her very soul.

"Why does she love you," the whisper asked. "Tell me why. Why do you love her?"

"It's n-none," Emma panted. "Of your fucking business."

Emma couldn't look away from hard eyes the colour of steel and glaciers. Cruel calculating eyes that clashed with the sickly green of the Witch's skin.

"A message for you, Regina," said the Witch. Her voice was an inaudible whisper that felt like it was being inscribed into Emma's mind:

_"I'm going to take everything from you._

_First your enemies, _

_then your friends, _

_and then your loved ones."_

The Witch lowered her face to press a kiss to Emma's lips.

_"I will take from you what you took from me."_

The explosion of images burst into Emma's mind in a series of painful headaches. She gasped and squeezed her eyes shut. Her whole body tensed. Her heart pounded. It was too intense.

_"No screaming. Remember, it's all in your head..."_

The last thing she knew before losing consciousness was a cold laugh. Fingers slipped from under her chin. Emma was out like a light before her head hit the frozen ground.

* * *

Henry was breathing hard and fast, forming white clouds in the freezing air. He knew he couldn't run much further. Anna was getting heavy. He was tired from walking for days with little food and he had no energy left. He didn't know if they had gotten far enough away yet.

_Emma!_ _Mom!_

_I have to get Mom for Emma._

It was the only thing still driving him through the white blur of forest. It all looked the same. Now that they were alone without Emma they were worse than lost. How was he to find his way to the castle? If it was hard before it was impossible now.

Henry came to a stop for a short rest but he after ten minutes he still couldn't make his legs start up again. He shifted Anna and pulled the sweater back down over her for warmth.

"Go home?" said Anna. "Mommy? Fog mean want sistuh bah?"

"We're going to get her back, Anna," said Henry. "Don't worry. My Mom will know what to do."

_I hope._

_Mom, why didn't you ever say anything before? You loved Emma all this time but you let us go. She loved you and we left anyway. Now she doesn't even remember. Why did you always fight? We could have been happy together. What is wrong with you two?! _

The sound of horses approaching had Henry looking left and right until he realised what was ahead. Beyond the rise there was a gravelly road that parted the trees and snowy ground cover. A half dozen soldiers mounted on horses with identical livery approached. They were followed by a small formation of infantry on foot.

The leading horseman pulled his enormous coal-black steed to a halt. The horse shook at the silver and black bridle and stomped a forefoot.

"You are on the Queen's road, boy." The soldier's voice was deep and sounded like the gravel that crunched under the horses' hooves. He swung himself from the saddle and approached with sword drawn.

Anna's trademark golden curls were untucked from the sweater she was wrapped in. It was too late for Henry to hide her.

"Hand over the baby."

"No." Henry said stubbornly. He was the last of Anna's protectors and he would stand up to it. Like Emma had.

It was unclear whether the man was friend or foe. He was dressed in black from boots up and his face was covered underneath a silver helmet. Silver branches curled across his leather chest armour. Henry backed away warily.

"Relinquish the princess," the soldier commanded. "I will not ask again."

Henry raised his chin and swallowed hard. The soldier now held his sword a hair's breath from Henry's neck.

"W-what do you want with her?"

The lead man gestured to one of his foot soldiers to take Anna from Henry. She went to him easily and again when she was handed to a seated horseman, as though she were being passed around among relatives.

"Hewo!" Anna chirped. She giggled and batted at the black feather plume of the soldier's helmet.

Henry rolled his eyes. _Anna,_ he growled in his head. _What are you doing, kid?_ She had to be the friendliest baby who ever lived. What happened to babies not liking strangers?

"Where are you taking her," Henry demanded.

The lead man ignored the question and looked him over, assessing his height and size. "How old are you, boy?"

"Twelve. Ten. Sixteen. What do you care."

"You abducted a Princess, we are allies of the Summer Kingdom from whence she hails. Do you know the punishment for such treason? The punishment is death meted out by Her Majesty the Queen Regina."

_Mom!_

Henry cried. "You're her soldiers? She knows me. I'm -"

"You are too young for that sentence. She would not kill you." The Constable of Regina's Elite Guard did not smile.

"She would ground me for a week is what she'd do," said Henry. "Take me to the Queen! You have to-"

The lead soldier gestured for another foot soldier and shoved Henry by the back towards him. The second grabbed his shoulders, easily restraining the much younger boy.

"Can you fight?" the second said.

Henry was confused. "What? No."

"Can you die?"

The soldiers began to laugh among themselves, obviously amused at the idea of a skinny pre-teen facing the horrors of the Ogres Wars. It was a relief to find any amusement and to forget that when they were boys the children of their village had been plucked away on the night of their birthdays. One by one. Their brothers, sisters, and friends had been taken away to answer the bloody call of the ogres' unquenchable thirst for violence.

The Constable silenced them all and gave his order.

"Send him to war."

* * *

Through the gap in the trees they saw the Witch startle as the arrow fired above her head. The streamlined projectile barely missed and buried itself into the bark of the tree directly behind. She was seen scanning the forest looking for the shooter apparently. They heard her chant under her breath, probably a spell to reveal hidden foes but still they remained concealed where they were.

"Who is there!" the Witch hissed.

Three more arrows loosed in quick succession and slammed into the bark. Closer this time. The heavy snow-covered branches quivered and shook off their burden. A watery threat fell and headed straight for the one below.

The Witch disappeared in a cloud of red smoke. She was gone.

"Nice shooting, Tip, my boy."

"Thanks," the young marksman grinned to the man beside. They were hidden in the forest. "I like archery but not as much as fishing. You have taught me well, Robin."

"Hm, is that so? Let me see your weapon." Robin took the elegant curved bow from his young friend to check for damage. It was made from the finest English Yew like his own was but this one was special. "An arrow from this bow never misses its target."

Tip nodded gravely. "I did not miss."

"You shot four arrows and did not hit once."

"I never meant to," said Tip. "No-one has the right to kill another. Not even me."

The two of them differed on many points of opinion, including whether or not violent force ought to be used to conquer enemies. Back at the camp while the other Merry Men romped and laughed, the two of them discussed and disagreed over more serious matters. Tip favoured pacifism and spoke like a man much older and wiser than fourteen, often insisting that money be done away with for peace's sake. Robin's honour was sound but he had seen war abroad and knew that sometimes violent tyrants only met their ends only through violent means.

"We should return to camp," said Robin. "Night draws near… Tip, what are you doing?"

"I want my arrows back."

Tip shrugged off the backpack and went over to retrieve the expended projectiles that were still sticking out of the tree like needles. Before the tree Tip nearly trod on something soft yet hard underfoot. Nearly covered entirely by snow but it was unmistakable.

"Robin! There's someone here. Injured, I think."

Robin came running and together they cleared the snow that had fallen to cover the prostrate form of an underdressed blonde woman. She was unconscious, her clothing was torn and her skin was turning blotchy pink from the cold. There were five ragged lines of dried blood on her back as though she had been clawed or scratched.

He turned her over and still she did not move or wake.

"Does she live?" asked Tip.

Robin felt the woman's throat and chest for breath signs. His reply was grim. "Alas I cannot tell."

Robin transferred their packs, quivers, and bows to Tip to carry and then he lifted the unknown woman's form into his arms. She was unresisting and cold to the touch. He led the way, heading in a direction he knew well by now.

"I wonder why she was after her?" said Tip, in stride. "Perhaps we saved her just in time. Are we taking her back to the camp with us?"

"She needs healing," said Robin. "I feel we should take her to Regina, my fiance. But surely that would be expected by our enemies and we cannot lead them there. If the girl does not survive there will be no need to add to the Queen's many troubles with this. I will not cause her unnecessary grief. We will return to camp for the night and decide upon the morrow."


End file.
